Cabinets For The Curious: Looking Back At Early English Museums

Arnold (The Wellcome Trust) examines the role played by museum makers and keepers in the production of factual knowledge during the scientific revolution. Focusing on the seventeenth century in England, Arnold describes the cultural history of museums as they operated within the context of science and establishes an intellectual framework to make new sense of questions museums ask even today, such as the role of the objects within them and the broader social function of the museum. He examines the narrative tradition of the early modern museum, including Robert Plot's philosophical histories and the concept of "learned treasures," the functional tradition, such as in medicinal chemistry and trade, and the taxonomic tradition, including the transforming idea of wonder quite apart from the idea of resolving disbelief. Annotation c2006 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Dr Ken Arnold is Head of Public Programmes for The Wellcome Trust, London, UK