Nestled amidst a Danish cannon made in 1776, a 19 century one from Sindh, and a piece of European artillery from the time of the East India Company, will soon be a ‘talking cannon’ which will spread the message of peace at the tap of a button.
On May 18 — International Museum Day — Fort Museum is adding two new exhibits to its open air gallery to engage children, said G. Maheshwari, superintending archaeologist, ASI (Chennai circle).
The original stone platform and pole used for the revolving cannons during the British era will now also have a life-sized model of a cannon with a revolving mechanism which children can operate, said K. Moortheeswari, deputy superintending archaeologist, Fort Museum, (Chennai circle).
Another highlight will be a ‘talking cannon’ with an inbuilt mp3 player. “The audio will take children through the history of cannons and spread the message of ahimsa and peace,” she said. Write-ups and information boards with trivia about various museums of the world will also greet visitors on Saturday.
This is in line with the theme of this year’s celebration ‘Museums (Memory + Creativity) = Social Change,’ whereby the museum housed in the Exchange Building at Fort St. George will showcase various exhibits that visitors, especially children, can engage with, an official said.
The museum on Republic Day had added a Freedom Fighters’ Gallery which houses the flag hoisted at Fort St. George on August 15, 1947. The museum has 10 galleries which showcase arms, uniforms, medals, church records, portraits, and coins from the British era.
To engage children who form a sizeable chunk of visitors, Egmore Museum too is renovating its children’s gallery.
The costume gallery, science and technology gallery, and transport gallery are among those being reorganised. R. Kannan, principal secretary, tourism, culture, HR and CE and museum departments, will inaugurate the gallery on International Museum Day.
On the day, entry will be free for all at Fort Museum, said Ms. Moortheeswari.
