Museams Are Temples

831 Words2 Pages

Throughout history, as Duncan P. Cameron stated in his article, Museum, a Temple or a Forum, museums have often been considered what one might call a temple. Museums have housed ancient artifacts as to glorify the cultures and present them in such a fashion to educate the public. As for the matter, do museums matter to societies? The answer would be absolutely. As museums offer up a unique aspect that nothing else could. The Internet can only get one so far. One cannot see the object in person or get close to it. Information online is not as credible as a public institution, such as a museum. Museums are liable to provide information that is factual concerning their collection pieces on display. As well, why would a museum want to lead their visitors astray, as they are even functioning merely to please the community? As history would present, museums have only grown to symbolize a greater place in society than ever before. They often define cities and present information that may have been lost in time. The museum took the position as peacekeeper and therefore their role would be to inform others for generations.
In concern of the Ethics Bowl scenario, one scenario sticks out that specifically designates museums as holders of ancient cultures and presenting them in modern settings. The British Museum became the owners of some ancient marbles from the Parthenon of Athens in the early 1800s. They thought that they would become a permanent part of their collection without concern of the origin of purchase. However, the marbles were able to purchase before the Ottomans gave over complete control or were even aware of what was going on. As history would have it, a man named Elgin, supposedly received control over the marbles and took...

... middle of paper ...

...eums, more than half the people all over the world would not know or even have the access to what the world has to offer. Since several people cannot travel due to financial restrictions, they are able to go to their cities local museum and educate themselves. Many people may discover a future career path or history that may be relevant in a visitor’s life personally that they would not have discovered without museums. The immense educational possibilities that museums hold alone contribute to their merit. As well, artists rely on museums to promote their work, or the families of artists who own their work after their death. Museums present an opportunity to expose and educate the public for the love of art. Museums house not only history, but also many display artists whose artistic influences and defined styles will be able to influence future generations to come.

Open Document