Great North Museum
Encyclopedia
The Great North Museum is a visitor attraction in Newcastle upon Tyne
in North East England
. It features two venues: the Great North Museum: Hancock and the Hatton Gallery
. Both the Hatton Gallery and the Hancock Museum are currently open.
, the Natural History Society of Northumbria and the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne
. The Great North Museum project has been made possible with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund
, TyneWear Partnership, One NorthEast
, the European Regional Development Fund
, Newcastle University, Newcastle City Council
, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport
, the Wolfson Foundation
and The Northern Rock Foundation, as well as numerous other trusts and foundations. The building architects were Terry Farrell and Partners; Sir Terry Farrell is a native of Newcastle, and had previously been a student at Newcastle University.
On 21 November 2008 the 'Be Part of It' campaign was launched, and it was announced that the Great North Museum: Hancock would be opening in 2009. Athlete Jonathan Edwards
is the patron of the 'Be Part of It' campaign. Donors to the campaign have the opportunity to have their name (or the name of a loved one) permanently included on a donor wall in the museum.
On 6 November 2009 HM The Queen
officially opened the Great North Museum. In 2009 the Great North Museum had over 600,000 visitors.
The Great North Museum Library is open to the public and is located on the second floor of the Hancock. It houses three collections - the Library and Archives of the Natural History Society of Northumbria, the Library of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne and Newcastle University’s Cowen Library.
The Great North Museum: Hancock not only holds the collections of the former Hancock Museum and collates those of Newcastle University's Museum of Antiquities
and Shefton Museum
, which closed their doors in 2008. The museum opened on 23 May 2009.
The natural history museum includes an interactive model of Hadrian's Wall
, new displays showing diversity of the animal and plant kingdoms, objects from the Ancient Greeks and mummies from Ancient Egypt
, a planetarium
and a life-size T-Rex dinosaur skeleton. The interactive Bio-Wall features hundreds of creatures, that visitors will be able to investigate and find out where they live and how they survive in such extreme places as the Arctic
and Desert
. Live animal tanks and aquaria have been integrated into this display where visitors are to see creatures such as wolf fish, pythons, lizards and leaf cutting ants. There is also a full size model of an elephant
, a great white shark
, a polar bear
, a giraffe
and moa
skeleton.
The university's art gallery, the Hatton Gallery is also a part of the Great North Museum Project, but is not relocating to the Hancock, and is thus remaining in Newcastle University's Fine Art Building. Its permanent collection comprises over 3,500 works, some dating back to the 14th century. These works of art include paintings, sculptures, prints and drawings. Notably, it houses the Merzbarn - the only surviving Merz
construction by Kurt Schwitters
. The gallery stayed open during the Great North Museum development.
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
in North East England
North East England
North East England is one of the nine official regions of England. It covers Northumberland, County Durham, Tyne and Wear, and Teesside . The only cities in the region are Durham, Newcastle upon Tyne and Sunderland...
. It features two venues: the Great North Museum: Hancock and the Hatton Gallery
Hatton Gallery
The Hatton Gallery is Newcastle University's art gallery in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, and is a part of the Great North Museum. It is based in the University's Fine Art Building.- History :...
. Both the Hatton Gallery and the Hancock Museum are currently open.
Development
The £26 million Great North Museum project is a partnership between Newcastle University, Tyne & Wear Museums, Newcastle City CouncilNewcastle City Council
Newcastle City Council is the local government authority for Newcastle upon Tyne, a city in Tyne and Wear, England. The council consists of 78 councillors, three for each of the city's 26 wards...
, the Natural History Society of Northumbria and the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne
Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne
The Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne, the oldest provincial antiquarian society in England, was founded in 1813..It has had a long interest in the archaeology of the north-east of England, particularly of Hadrian's Wall, but also covering prehistoric and mediaeval periods, as well as...
. The Great North Museum project has been made possible with funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund
Heritage Lottery Fund
The Heritage Lottery Fund is a fund established in the United Kingdom under the National Lottery etc. Act 1993. The Fund opened for applications in 1994. It uses money raised through the National Lottery to transform and sustain the UK’s heritage...
, TyneWear Partnership, One NorthEast
One NorthEast
One North East is the regional development agency for the North East England region.-History:It was established in April 1999. The North East receives a lot of government aid for regeneration....
, the European Regional Development Fund
European Regional Development Fund
The European Regional Development Fund is a fund allocated by the European Union.-History:During the 1960s, the European Commission occasionally tried to establish a regional fund. Only Italy ever supported this, however, and nothing came of it. Britain made it an issue for their accession in...
, Newcastle University, Newcastle City Council
Newcastle City Council
Newcastle City Council is the local government authority for Newcastle upon Tyne, a city in Tyne and Wear, England. The council consists of 78 councillors, three for each of the city's 26 wards...
, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport is a department of the United Kingdom government, with responsibility for culture and sport in England, and some aspects of the media throughout the whole UK, such as broadcasting and internet....
, the Wolfson Foundation
Wolfson Foundation
The Wolfson Foundation is a charity that awards grants to support excellence in the fields of science and medicine, health, education and the arts & humanities.- Overview :...
and The Northern Rock Foundation, as well as numerous other trusts and foundations. The building architects were Terry Farrell and Partners; Sir Terry Farrell is a native of Newcastle, and had previously been a student at Newcastle University.
On 21 November 2008 the 'Be Part of It' campaign was launched, and it was announced that the Great North Museum: Hancock would be opening in 2009. Athlete Jonathan Edwards
Jonathan Edwards (athlete)
Jonathan David Edwards, CBE, is a former British triple jumper. He is a former Olympic, Commonwealth, European and World champion, and has held the world record in the event since 1995....
is the patron of the 'Be Part of It' campaign. Donors to the campaign have the opportunity to have their name (or the name of a loved one) permanently included on a donor wall in the museum.
On 6 November 2009 HM The Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
officially opened the Great North Museum. In 2009 the Great North Museum had over 600,000 visitors.
The Great North Museum Library is open to the public and is located on the second floor of the Hancock. It houses three collections - the Library and Archives of the Natural History Society of Northumbria, the Library of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne and Newcastle University’s Cowen Library.
Great North Museum: Hancock
Museum of Antiquities
The Museum of Antiquities was an archaeological museum at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It opened in 1960 and in 2009 its collections were merged into the Great North Museum: Hancock.- History :...
and Shefton Museum
Shefton Museum
The Shefton Museum of Greek Art and Archaeology was an archaeological museum at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, England which opened in 1956 and closed in 2008. Its collections are now part of the Great North Museum.- History :...
, which closed their doors in 2008. The museum opened on 23 May 2009.
The natural history museum includes an interactive model of Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall
Hadrian's Wall was a defensive fortification in Roman Britain. Begun in AD 122, during the rule of emperor Hadrian, it was the first of two fortifications built across Great Britain, the second being the Antonine Wall, lesser known of the two because its physical remains are less evident today.The...
, new displays showing diversity of the animal and plant kingdoms, objects from the Ancient Greeks and mummies from Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
, a planetarium
Planetarium
A planetarium is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation...
and a life-size T-Rex dinosaur skeleton. The interactive Bio-Wall features hundreds of creatures, that visitors will be able to investigate and find out where they live and how they survive in such extreme places as the Arctic
Arctic
The Arctic is a region located at the northern-most part of the Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean and parts of Canada, Russia, Greenland, the United States, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. The Arctic region consists of a vast, ice-covered ocean, surrounded by treeless permafrost...
and Desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
. Live animal tanks and aquaria have been integrated into this display where visitors are to see creatures such as wolf fish, pythons, lizards and leaf cutting ants. There is also a full size model of an elephant
Elephant
Elephants are large land mammals in two extant genera of the family Elephantidae: Elephas and Loxodonta, with the third genus Mammuthus extinct...
, a great white shark
Great white shark
The great white shark, scientific name Carcharodon carcharias, also known as the great white, white pointer, white shark, or white death, is a large lamniform shark found in coastal surface waters in all major oceans. It is known for its size, with the largest individuals known to have approached...
, a polar bear
Polar Bear
The polar bear is a bear native largely within the Arctic Circle encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the world's largest land carnivore and also the largest bear, together with the omnivorous Kodiak Bear, which is approximately the same size...
, a giraffe
Giraffe
The giraffe is an African even-toed ungulate mammal, the tallest of all extant land-living animal species, and the largest ruminant...
and moa
Moa
The moa were eleven species of flightless birds endemic to New Zealand. The two largest species, Dinornis robustus and Dinornis novaezelandiae, reached about in height with neck outstretched, and weighed about ....
skeleton.
Hatton Gallery
The university's art gallery, the Hatton Gallery is also a part of the Great North Museum Project, but is not relocating to the Hancock, and is thus remaining in Newcastle University's Fine Art Building. Its permanent collection comprises over 3,500 works, some dating back to the 14th century. These works of art include paintings, sculptures, prints and drawings. Notably, it houses the Merzbarn - the only surviving Merz
Merz
Merz is a German surname and may refer to:* Aaron Merz , American football player* Alfred Merz , Austrian-German oceanologist* Charles Hesterman Merz , Pioneer of the National Grid UK...
construction by Kurt Schwitters
Kurt Schwitters
Kurt Hermann Eduard Karl Julius Schwitters was a German painter who was born in Hanover, Germany. Schwitters worked in several genres and media, including Dada, Constructivism, Surrealism, poetry, sound, painting, sculpture, graphic design, typography and what came to be known as...
. The gallery stayed open during the Great North Museum development.