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Canadian Museums
A museum of a country depicts the country’s history from the past to the present. It also reflects the country’s culture, traditions, customs, and heritage. There are 2000 museums in Canada reflecting both the histories of humans and the nature of the country. Similarly, Canada’s museums have magnificent halls which feature the country’s fine arts, artifacts, exhibitions, paintings, statues, and galleries, each telling its own stories about Canada. Here are some museums in Canada for virtual tours by visitors, which will help them explore Canada’s history vividly.
1. Royal Ontario Museum
The Royal Ontario Museum is one of the biggest art museums and portrays varied world cultures in Canada was established on 16th April 1912. It displays relics of dinosaurs, ancient Roman sculptures, minerals, European artifacts, and meteorites and showcases clothing(costumes and textiles), art designs, and the largest collection of fossils. As you walk from floor to floor, some fascinating objects you will find here are an Egyptian mummy and a preserved heart of a whale.
It is a must-visit for a virtual tour for people interested in archaeology, geology, mineralogy, zoology, and paleontology. There are over 40 galleries inside it, such as natural history gallery, gallery of costumes and textiles, contemporary culture gallery, earth, space gallery, art gallery, and fossils. It has 6 lakh items in total.
Location– 100 Queen’s Park, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 2C6.
Timings– Wednesday to Sunday, 10 am-5:30 pm
2. Canadian Museum for Human Rights
Photo from Robert Linsdell/Flickr
The Canadian Museum for Human Rights building is the only museum of its kind. One side of the building is wrapped by a cloud of glass which mirrors the dove’s wings. Its main aim was to create awareness about human rights. It tells various inspirational stories of human struggle, unity, and human dignity for promoting human rights through art, movies, artifacts, and media. It was designed by Antoine Predrock, an American architect who won the international design competition for this project. It is sourced from Shoal Lake 40 First Nation.
Inside the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, there is a dark stone entrance; visitors enter the Great Hall after crossing it. There is an eye-catching Tower of Hope in the hall (a 100metre protruding glass spire from the museum) which gives a panoramic view of the city of Winnipeg. There are also various attractions like Garden of Contemplation, having still-water pools, and the museum’s basement has a restaurant, meeting space, visitor services, and a gift shop. Sometimes, it organizes events of art free of cost.
Location– 85 Israel Asper Way, Winnipeg, MB R3C 0L5.
Timings– Tuesday to Saturday, 10 am-5 pm.
3. The Manitoba Museum
The planetarium of this place gives a wonderful view of the night sky. It is the largest museum in the Manitoba province, designed by Herbert Henry Gatenby Moody in 1965. It has natural history specimens in the arcade to explore history and science. The Orientation gallery, which has a sculptor of Metis Hunter on horseback, The Earth History Gallery having various fossils, especially from the Ordovician Sea, depicts the geological history of the cit., The Nonsuch Gallery showcases the replica of the Nonsuch ship that helped in the founding of Hudson Bay. The Urban Gallery depicts the street scenes of the city. The Winnipeg Gallery presents the history of Indigenous people through marvelous artifacts. The others include Arctic/Sub-Artic Gallery, HBC Gallery, and so on.
Location-190 Rupert Ave, located in Winnipeg, MB R3B 0N2.
Timings– Thursday to Sunday, 11 am to 5 pm.
4. Museum of Anthropology
Arthur Erickson designed the building in 1976 on the campus of the University of British Columbia. It has 36,000 ethnographic objects and 535,000 archaeological objects, 6000 textiles, several arts, sculptures, and so on, by popular artists. The museum’s reciprocal research network was created in partnership with the Musqueam Indian band. It is a place for collections of world art and culture with an emphasis on Indigenous communities.
The sculpture of Raven and The First Men by Bill Reid is one of the iconic objects of the museum of anthropology. There are galleries such as Auden, which is for temporary exhibitions, Koerner European Ceramics, Multiversity showing items from behind the scenes and making them accessible to people. This Canadian museum mostly reflects the country’s earlier days and the culture of British Columbia’s Indigenous people.
Location– 6393 NW Marine Drive, located in Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z2.
Timings– Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am -5 pm.
5. Royal Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology
Photo from Wilson Hui/Flickr
This was set up in 1993, having 13 exhibits with 800 fossils depicted through audio-visuals, interactive computers, and video programs. The most eye-catching display surely is that of the huge dinosaur skeletons. Many exhibits display specimens such as the Burgess Shale exhibit, Borealopelta, Albertosaurus, Camarasaurus, Triceratops, Shonisaurus, Tyrannosaurus, and also Black Beauty.
The museum’s collection is mostly used for research or scientific purposes or museum exhibits. The museum’s exhibits also include the Cretaceous Garden, the Learning Lounge, Foundations and Preparation Lab, and so on. This place provides a lot of fun, creative and educational activities for kids as well. It is a must-visit place for science and Jurassic park lovers.
Location– 1500N Dinosaur Trail, Drumheller region, AB T0J 0Y0, Canada.
Timings– Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am-5 pm.
6. Canada Museum of Immigration at Pier 21
Pier 21 is a national historic site and a gateway to the country, which served the Canadian militants during the second world war. Now, it features the Canadian Museum of Immigration. It is based on immigration to Canada and its influences on Canadian life, customs, traditions, and economy. Stories, photos, and artifacts reverberate the history of immigration during the second world war and how the refugees and soldiers left for war. This provides a deeper understanding of the experiences of the immigrants, their contribution and enables you to explore the immigration story in the Canadian Immigration Hall.
Location– 1055 Marginal Rd, Halifax, NS B3H 4P7, Nova Scotia.
Timings– Wednesday to Sunday, 10 am-5 pm.
7. Royal Alberta Museum
This is the largest museum in Western Canada, devoted to natural, cultural, and human history, military and political collections, and Indigenous stories. It was established in December 1967 by the Government of Alberta. The Natural History Hall consists of a collection of dioramas, fossils, plants, and animals representing the wildlife of Alberta, Human History Hall, which tells the stories of Alberta’s people and its past, changing exhibition tells contemporary stories related to Alberta. There is also a section for bugs that showcase insects, spiders, and invertebrates. The Children’s section engages the young visitors to play and learn. Wildlife of Alberta is also presented in the Wild Alberta section, agricultural exhibits, and many more.
Location-9810 103a Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T5J 0G2, Alberta province.
Timings-Wednesday to Saturday 10 am to 4 pm
8. Royal Saskatchewan Museum
Photo from Haydn Blackey/Flickr
Established in 1906, it is the first museum in the Canadian prairies. The place shows a wide range of biological diversity of the region, especially dinosaurs and other extinct creatures. The T. Rex gallery consists of fossil specimens of plants and animals, habitats, and environment. The Earth Science gallery displays rich mineral resources, giant reptiles, dinosaurs, and extinct creatures. The First Nations depicts the lives of the Indigenous community and how they are dependent on the earth for their livelihood. The Life Science gallery shows a varied display of the species and beauty of the Saskatchewan landscape. Remai houses of Saskatchewan has an art gallery consisting of Picasso’s ceramics and linocuts.
Location– 2445 Albert St, Regina, SK S4P 4W7, Wascana Centre.
Timings-Monday to Saturday, 9.30 am-5 pm.
9. Canadian Museum of Nature
by Shankar s./Flickr
It helps you explore science related to fossils, birds, mammals, minerals, plate tectonics, birds, and artic discovery. The mammal gallery is the most notable among all presenting the Canadian wildlife with grizzlies and bison. You can also come across live creatures like beetles, cockroaches, stick insects, spotted turtles, moon jellyfish, butterflies, and more. You will also see an enormous blue whale skeleton and a volcano model, which will surely demand your attention. You can enjoy your virtual tour amidst the world-class arcades depicting the natural environment.
Location-240 McLeod St, Ottawa, ON K2P 2R1, Ontario.
Timings-Wednesday, Friday, Saturday(10am – 4pm) ,Thursday(11am -7pm) and Sunday(11am-4pm)
10. The Virtual Museum of Canada
In the Rooms in Newfoundland, you can search for old records, social and cultural treasures, art, tundra animal life, and military aspects under one roof. There are also other museums, such as the Montreal Museum of Fine arts, in Quebec city has 41,000 works in its collection. It is fully based on the theme of pure arts such as music, film, fashion, and design. Apart from these, you will also find a painting by Monet, an ancient glass vase, some modern furniture, and many more. Hence, there are a lot of museums for tourists to visit. Some of them even organize free events.
If you are a person who is curious to know about historical things and are interested in gaining knowledge, then you must surely fix your date and plan your trip to visit the museums. All the nations across the globe have their own story, which is transferred to the people through these museums. Museums are ideal places for virtual tours by students, researchers, and scholars. Virtual tours can provide people with a pleasing experience for gathering information on a vast array of subjects.