Terry and I are into day trips these days... weather permitting!
One day recently, we headed across the river to the Quebec side (Gatineau) to visit the
Canadian Museum of History, formerly called the Museum of Civilization.
We hadn't toured the museum since our children were small and the museum was new.
Currently the displays open to the public focus on native life...
... and confederation.
(From the size of these garments worn back then, I assume that people were much smaller!)
Even the Canadian native artifacts displayed focused heavily on those from the West Coast. They were beautiful - but what about the rest of Canada?! So disappointing!
Most moving was a special exhibit on the Terry Fox run, 35 years ago.
On display were the van he called home during the run, as well as some personal items, like the shoes...
... and this sock he wore - a stark reminder of how hard the run must have been on him.
Dozens of the letters and video comments about the impact of the run on all Canadians, especially those with cancer, were a reminder of the humility and achievement of this determined young man.
All in all, I was disappointed by the limited scope of Canadian history the museum presented on the day we visited.
The building was and still is beautiful architecturally, but apart from that, there wasn't much to see.
I know we are a young country, but so much is missing... the explorers, the waves of immigrants, the loyalists. The changes in the country over the last 300 years... logging, education, how women's lives have changed... The list goes on.
A special display on the Vikings was due to open the day after we were there. But even with that, our national history museum is seriously lacking.
Hopefully once the second floor renovation is complete, the museum will give a more complete picture of Canadian history... who we are and how we got here.
I was always under the impression that more west-coast indigenous art survived was 2 fold. Firstly the temperate climate (and a more stable food source) led to more permanent settlements and more (and larger scale) art being produced. Secondly due to their location they were one of the last groups to be "discovered" by European explorers. That is not to say that beautiful and important pieces were not produced by indigenous populations outside of the west coast but I hope it helps the context.
ReplyDeleteWest coast native art is beautiful. My point was that, in its current state, the museum doesn't show Canadian history. It doesn't even give much information about Canadian natives, their history and diversity.
ReplyDeleteWhat would a visitor who knows nothing about Canadian history learn by visiting the museum? Not much. I don't think the museum lives up to its name.