Papers relating to the planning of the Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh

The collection is composed of:

• Conceptual briefs, reports and drawings including reports on the various themes for the new museum; exhibition briefs; and, material directly relating to themes on Beginnings, the Church, Jacobites, Enlightenment, the Union, the Victorians and Edwardians, Land, Trade and Industry.

• Museum zone drawings, plans and layouts; and more material on the various themes of Trade, Industry, Commerce, Money, and the Church.

• Museum 2nd Floor sign-off report; reviews, reports etc; and, material on the First Peoples theme

• Newspaper cuttingObserver Review8 November 1998; copy ofA nation in armsScottish United Services Museum; copy of the Bute Report, Museum, 1985; copy ofMuseum of Scotland project; copy ofGuide to NMS collections; material on acquisitions and disposal policy; various annual reports; and, report on themes, outlines of themes for the new museum.

• Report of the National Museums of Scotland, Museum of Scotland, prepared by T.B.V. Dangerfield entitledBeginnings. Phase 1 Report, November 1995.

The Museum of Scotland, part of the National Museums of Scotland, was designed by the architects Benson and Forsyth. The firm had been selected as winners of an archictectural competition in 1991. The design received inspiration from Scotland's national building tradition, evoking the idea of castle, broch, tower house, and tenement. Materials used include external cladding of golden Clashach sandstone from Morayshire, and concrete, limestone, beech, and smooth plaster in the interior of the building. A roof-top garden offers views of Edinburgh Castle , Greyfriars Kirk, the Scott Monument, the city skyline generally, the sea, and the hills.

The Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh, was the first national museum project in the UK since the mid-19th century and it was opened by the Queen in November 1998.

Professor Michael Lynch, Edinburgh University, was appointed as a consultant to the Exhibition Review Committee (ERC) which oversaw the planning of the building and the devising of the content.

Access should be unrestricted but please check in advance of any consultation.