Ulster Museum
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{{Infobox Museum
|name = Ulster Museum
|image = Butal2.jpg|thumb|230px|Exterior of Ulster Museum designed by [[James Cumming Wynne]]
|established = 1929
|location = [[Belfast]], [[Northern Ireland]]
|website = [http://www.ulstermuseum.org.uk/ www.ulstermuseum.org.uk]
}}
The '''Ulster Museum''' is located in the [[Belfast Botanic Gardens|Botanical Gardens]] in [[Belfast]], [[Northern Ireland]], and has around 8,000 square metres of public display space, featuring material from the collections of Fine and Applied Art, Archaeology, Ethnography, Treasures from the [[Spanish Armada in Ireland|Spanish Armada]], [[Local History]], Numismatics, Industrial Archaeology, [[Botany]], [[Zoology]] and [[Geology]]. It is the largest museum in Northern Ireland.<ref>[http://www.gift-hampergalore.co.uk/belguide.htm Tourist sites in NI]</ref>
The museum is currently closed until 2009 for refurbishment.
==History==
The Museum was founded as the [[Belfast Natural History Society]] in 1821 and began exhibiting in 1833. It has included an art gallery since 1890. In 1929 the museum moved to its present location, the new building was designed by James Cumming Wynne. A major extension by Francis Pym was begun in 1962 and opened in 1964. It is in the [[Brutalist architecture|Brutalist Style]], praised by [[David Evans]] for the “almost barbaric power of its great cubic projections and cantilevers brooding over the [[conifer]]s of the botanic gardens like a [[mastodon]]”.<ref>{{cite web |last=O'Toole |first=Shane |title=Apocalypse now, if we are not careful |publisher=The Sunday Times |date=[[31 December]] [[2006]] |url=http://www.press.unibocconi.eu/dwload_doc.php?Invia=Scarica&allegato=Articolo_Times20070102114614.pdf |accessdate=2007-07-08}}</ref>
Since the 1940s the Ulster Museum has built up very good collection of [[art]] by modern [[Irish people|Irish]], and particularly [[Northern Irish people|Northern Irish]], artists.
In 1998, the Ulster Museum, which includes Armagh County Museum,[http://www.armaghcountymuseum.org.uk] merged with the [[Ulster Folk and Transport Museum]] [http://www.uftm.org.uk] to form the National Museums and Galleries of Northern Ireland, MAGNI.
In July 2005, a £12m refurbishment of the museum was announced, with funding coming from the [[Heritage Lottery Fund]] and the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure.<ref>[http://www.dcalni.gov.uk/index/museums.htm Museums | DCAL Internet<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> In October 2006 the museum closed its doors until 2009, to allow for the refurbishment work.<ref>{{cite web|title=Museum doors close for renovation|publisher=BBC|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/5397298.stm|accessdate=2007-07-08}}</ref>
==Exhibits==
[[Image:Triceratops Ulster Museum.jpg|thumb|230px|The Triceratops exhibit at Ulster Museum.]]
The Ulster Museum contains important collections of [[birds]], [[List of Irish Mammals|Irish mammals]], [[insects]], [[molluscs]], marine [[invertebrates]], [[flowering plants]], [[algae]] and [[lichens]], as well as an archive of books and manuscripts relating to [[Ireland|Irish]] [[natural history]]. The museum also maintains a natural history website named ''Habitas''.<ref>http://www.habitas.org.uk.</ref> In the late 1980s and the early 1990s it had a permanent exhibition on [[dinosaur]]s which has since been scaled back considerably. There is also a collection of [[Petrology|rocks]], [[Mineralogy|minerals]] and [[Palaeontology|fossils]].
===[[Zoology]]===
====List of zoological collections====
====Historic====
*[[Joseph Whitaker (Ornithologist)|Joseph Whitaker]] early 20th century, mounted birds from [[Sicily]].
*[[William Thompson (Ornithologist)|William Thompson]] mid 19th century author of ''Natural History of Ireland'', Mollusca, birds, algae.
*[[Robert Templeton]] (Belfast, Colombo) mid 19th century insects from [[Ceylon]].
*[[George Crawford Hyndman]] mollusca and Indian birds.
*[[William Monad Crawford]] early 20th century Butterflies from [[Burma]].
*Canon [[William Berterick Johnson]] early 20th century, Coleoptera.
*[[Charles Langham]] early 20th century, Irish insects [[Europe]]an butterflies.
*[[H.M Peebles]] Himalayan snow butterflies ([[Parnassius|''Parnassiinae'']])
*[[Robert Welch (photographer)|Robert Welch]] early 20th century Mollusca.
*[[Herbert T Malcolmson]] early 20th century [[James Sheals]] bird mounts (Ireland).
*[[Thomas Workman]] late 19th century Lepidoptera
====Recent====
*[[Paul Wilcox]] (1943- ) Butterflies of [[Malay Peninsula|Malaya]].
*[[Paul Smart]] (1941- ) Tropical butterflies
*[[Raymond Haynes]] Irish Butterflies Moths
*[[James P. Brock]] [[Ichneumonidae]]
*[[Conchology|Shell collections]], [[Nudibranch]]s and [[Sea sponge]]s
*[[J.R.Stoffel]] Types of [[Agrias (butterfly)|Agrias]] butterflies
===Important Individual Specimens===
*[[Holotype]] of [[Emperor Penguin]] collected by [[Captain Crozier]] of Banbridge
*Champion Patrick of Ifold - [[Irish wolfhound]]<ref>[http://www.ulstermuseum.org.uk/tours/?tv=28&pg=8 Ulster Museum]</ref>
*[[Dwarf elephant]] skeletons from Sicily.
* The [[Egypt]]ian [[mummy|mummified]] body of [[Takabuti]].
* Mummy case of [[Tjesmutperet]].
*[[Slender-billed Curlew]]
*[[Rothschild's Birdwing|Rothschild's]], [[Queen Alexandra's Birdwing|Queen Alexandra's ]] and other [[Birdwing]] butterflies.
*[[Giant Clam]] - given to the [[Belfast Natural History Society]] by [[Francis Walker (entomologist)|Francis Walker]]
*[[Lammergeier]] mount by James Sheals
*[[Gervais' Beaked Whale]] (''Mesoplodon europaeus'')
*[[Japanese spider crab]]
[[Image:Macrocheira kaempferi.jpg|thumb|230px|Giant Spider Crab]]
*[[Bonaparte's Gull]] collected by [[William Thompson (naturalist)|William Thompson]] - the first European specimen.
*[[Giant squid]] Model
*[[Thylacine]]
*[[Coelacanth]]
*[[Bald Eagle]] Juvenile from near Garrison, County Fermanagh on 11 January 1973.
*[[Passenger Pigeon]]
*[[Irish Elk]]
*[[Yellow-billed Cuckoo]] (Irish specimen)
*''[[Conus gloriamaris]]''
===Wildlife art===
The Zoology Department also maintains collections of Wildlife Art. Works by
[[Peter Scott]], [[Joseph Wolf]], [[Eric Ennion]], [[John Gerrard Keulemans]], [[Roger Tory Peterson]], [[Charles Tunnicliffe]], [[Robert Gillmor]] and [[Archibald Thorburn]] are included. Illustrated works held by the Zoology Department include [[British Entomology - being illustrations and descriptions of the genera of insects found in Great Britain and Ireland]] — a classic work of entomology by [[John Curtis (entomologist)|John Curtis]] and [[Niccolò Gualtieri]]'s ''Index Testarum Conchyliorum, quae adservantur in Museo Nicolai Gualtieri'' 1742.
===[[Botany]]===
====The Herbarium (BEL)====
The [[herbarium]] in the Ulster Museum (BEL),[http://www.ulstermuseum.org.uk/filestore/documents/natural_history_factsheets/umherbarium.pdf] is based on specimens from [[Belfast Natural History and Philosophical Society]] (founded in 1821); the [[Belfast Naturalists' Field Club]] (founded in 1863); the Belfast Museum and Art Gallery (formed 1905) and the herbarium (BFT) of the Botany Departmeny of [[Queen's University, Belfast]] acquired in 1968. In total the number of specimens is more than 100,000. Although specimens from Northern Ireland are well represented, specimens from elsewhere in the world have been acquired by donation, exchange and purchase. All branches of the world's flora are represented: algae, lichens, [[fungi]], [[mosses]] and [[pteridophytes]] (ferns), [[conifers]] and [[angiosperms]]. Little information about the Irish flora before 1830 is available, the oldest specimen in the Ulster Museum is an alga: ''Batrachospermum moniliforme'' (BEL: F41) collected in 1798 by [[John Templeton]], other specimens of ''Batrachospermum'', originally incorrectly identified as ''Thorea ramoissima'' were collected by John Templeton in 1815 from a "boghole" in [[Co. Donegal]] (BEL:F42 - F47). It was originally published by Harvey in 1841.<ref name="Harvey 41">'''Harvey, W.H.''' 1841.''A Manual of the British Algae:...'' London</ref>
===List of some of the collectors===
* S.A.Bennett (1843 — 1929)
* Corrie Denew Chase (1878 — 1965). ([[vascular plants]] and algae) — his herbarium of about 4,000 sheets was passed to [[Methodist College Belfast]] who passed it to the museum in 1970.
* [[John Cocks]] (1787 — 1861) (algae)
* [[Thomas Hughes Corry]] (1859 — 1883) (vascular plants).
* [[A. Fenton]] (A.F-G.Fenton) (lichens)
* [[M.Foslie]] (algae)
* [[Paul Hackney]] (1945 — ) (vascular plants and [[mosses]])
* [[William Henry Harvey]] (1811 — 1866) (algae).
* [[George Crawford Hyndman]] (1796 — 1867) (algae).
* Frederick Hugh Woodhams Kerr (1885 — 1958) (vascular plants)
* Mary Patriria Happer Kertland (1901 — 1991) (vascular plants)
* [[William McCalla]] (c.1814 — 1849) (algae).
* [[Osborne Morton]] (1945 — ) (lichens and algae)
* [[Robert Lloyd Praeger]] (1865 — 1953) (vascular plants)
* Arthur Wilson Stelfox (1883 — 1972) (vascular plants)
* Samuel Alexander Stewart (1826 — 1910) (vascular plants)
* [[John Templeton (Botanist)]] John Templeton (1766 — 1825) (algae).
* [[William Thompson (ornithologist and botanist)|William Thompson]] (1805 — 1852) (algae).
* [[Sylvanus Wear]] (1858 — 1920) (vascular plants and algae)
* [[Coslett Herbert Waddell]] (1858 — 1919) (vascular plants, [[bryophyte]]s and algae).
===1960s Art===
:(See also [[List of years in art#1960s]])
The collection contains works by:
*[[Jean Dubuffet]]
*[[Morris Louis Bernstein|Morris Louis]]
*[[Anthony Caro]]
*[[Karel Appel]]
*[[Francis Bacon]]
*[[Joseph Beuys]]
*[[Eduardo Paolozzi]]
*[[Jean-Robert Ipoustéguy]]
===Past Art Exhibitions===
During the 1970s and 1980s, the favourite exibit of every child in Ulster was the museum's geological machine. This was a large map of Ireland (approximately 6 feet tall), covered with a mosiac of little tiles (each about 1 centimetre square). Inside each tile was appropriately coloured bulb, reflecting the geological era of rock deposits there. A control panel beneath the map had buttons for each era. Pressing an era's button would cause the corresponding mosiac tiles in the map to light up. The most rubbish era was [[Permian]], with only one little pink tile; the best was [[Carboniferous]], which would light up about two-thirds of Ireland with a dazzling electric blue glow. In an act of gross cultural sabotage, the museum decided to remove the machine at the end of the 20th century, and throw it in a skip.
====Partial List====
*[[Scultori italiani|Scultura Italiana]] 1964
*[[Henri Laurens]], 16 July-30 August, 1971
===[[Ethnographic]] Collections===
*[[Chola Art]]. [http://www.unc.edu/courses/2005fall/art/022/001/images/252329.jpg]
*[[Bronze]] statues from the [[Chola Dynasty]].
*[[Samurai]] Armour.
*[[Solomon Islands]] war canoe. (Similar boat).<ref>[http://www.museum.vic.gov.au/Treasures/record.aspx?img=5&Path=3&ID=17 Treasures, Museum Victoria celebrates 150 years, Australia, Victoria, Melbourne<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
===Girona===
The museum acquired [[Armada]] artefacts from the [[Galleass]] [[Girona (ship)]] in 1971.
==Renovation Programme==
[[Image:Ulster Museum refurbishment.jpg|thumb|180px|Refurbishment under way - February 2008]]
The Ulster Museum is now closed to the public for renovation, this will take about three years and cost about £12m. Its character will be dramatically changed. Meanwhile all the specimens are lodged in an outside store. Books and journals, not regularly required, have been sent to an ''archive store'' and temporary buildings have been erected for the academic staff while the building is being renovated. In May 2007, however, builders had not actually been appointed to conduct the work.
While the museum is closed, it is organising an extensive programme of travelling exhibitions around Northern Ireland, and information on the Ulster Museum's collections is available on its website.
===See also===
* [[Irish art]]
* [[History of phycology]]
==References==
{{reflist}}
==Bibliography==
* Hackney, P. 1972. Notes on the vascular plant herbarium of the Ulster Museum. ''Ir. Nat. J.'' '''17''': 230 - 233.
* Hackney, P. 1980. Some early nineteenth century herbaria in Belfast. '''20''': 114 - 119.
* Hackney, P. 1981. British vascular plant collection of the Ulster Museum. ''Biology Curators' Group.'' '''2''': 2 - 3.
* Nesbitt, N. 1979. ''A Museum in Belfast.'' Ulster Museum.
* McMillan, N.F. and Morton, O. 1979. A Victorian album of algae from the north of Ireland with specimens collected by William Sawers. ''Ir. Nat. J.'' '''19''': 384 - 387.
* Morton, O. 1977a. A note on W.H.Harvey's algae in the Ulster Museum. ''Ir. Nat. J.'' '''18''': 26.
* Morton, O. 1977b. Sylvanus Wear's algal collection in the Ulster Museum. ''Ir. Nat. J.'' '''19''': 92 - 93.
* Morton, O. 1980. Three algal collections in the Ulster Museum herbarium. ''Ir. Nat. J.'' '''20''': 33 - 37.
* Morton, O. 1981a. Algae in ''Biology Curators Group Newsletter.'' '''3''': 12 - 13.
* Morton, O. 1981b American algae collected by W.H.Harvey and others, in the Ulster Museum Herbarium. ''Taxon'' '''30''': 867 - 868.
* Morton, O. 1994. ''Marine Algae of Northern Ireland.'' Ulster Museum, Belfast. ISBN 0 900761 28 8
* Praeger, R.L. 1949. ''Some Irish Naturalist.''
==External links==
* [http://www.ulstermuseum.org.uk/ Ulster Museum - official website]
* [http://www.thenorthernirelandguide.co.uk/ulster-museum-botanic-gardens-belfast/ The Northern Ireland Guide: The Ulster Museum]
* [http://www.habitas.org.uk/ Habitas (Ulster Museum Sciences Division) website]
* [http://www.ulstermuseum.org.uk/the-collections/ The Collections]
* [http://www.ulstermuseum.org.uk/ask-the-experts/ Ask The Experts]
{{Museums and Galleries in Ireland}}
[[Category:Museums in Northern Ireland]]
[[Category:Art museums and galleries in Northern Ireland]]
[[Category:Education in Belfast]]
[[Category:Tourism in County Antrim]]
[[Category:Natural history museums]]
[[Category:Brutalist buildings in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Brutalist structures]]
[[fr:Ulster Museum]]