Attendees: Iohanna
Nina Barclay [host]
C. Claudius Barbatus
Chris Chan
A. Iulius Paterculus
Iohanna and I arrived outside of the Norwich Free Academy around 12:45 p.m. There was quite a bit of traffic. There was a woman in uniform at the gate letting in cars, who gave us directions to the museum. Nina, Barbatus, and Chris joined the group one at a time.
After we had greeted one another and introduced ourselves. Nina began the tour with a description of the school’s history. It had been founded by a textile magnate & funded by other wealthy Norwich residents who lived on what was then “Millionaire’s Mile”, built on donated land. The intention of the school was to offer free education to bright students without means, so originally an entrance examination was required. When laws were passed requiring free public schooling for all, the town of Norwich offered money for additional teachers & educational resources in exchange for dropping the entrance exam. We also learned that an exhibition of pastels was currently taking place in the museum, one of several events which had drawn the crowd.
After this introduction, we entered the atrium, which had been built recently and was shared with other school buildings. As we took the elevator to the entrance of the museum itself, Nina explained how the school’s administration had come to build the museum. We entered through the gift shop, each paying $3 admission at the register
The first room was modelled to show what the “Grand Tour” taken during the Victorian Era would have looked like, with the specific voyages of the museum’s founder and his family used as an example. One exhibit we examined closely was a collection of plaster medallions, common souvenirs at that time. Many had mythological themes, including one of Achilles being dipped into the river Styx which we attempted to find amidst the assortment. Also of interest was a portrait of Lucretia in mid-suicide, which prompted a brief discussion.
Next was a series of rooms filled with plaster replicas of various Classical sculptures. These had been part of the over 200 plaster statues added to the museum’s collection when it first opened. Nina told us a bit about the maintenance process. Then we spent a while looking over the statues one or a small group at a time, discussing their significance and admiring the artistry behind them. In some cases, such as the winged Nike of Olympia with her pedestal or the altar frieze from Pergamum with the famous statue of Laocoon from Rome , the juxtaposition of two replicas could offer perspectives which would have been difficult to achieve with the originals due to their presence in separate locations in Europe. In addition to sharing her knowledge of the historical background, Nina pointed out the works which drew the most appreciation from students.
After we had seen the Classical artwork, there were several more galleries to explore: African artwork, contemporary paintings by Norwich artists, Renaissance artwork (part of the same original collection of plaster replicas), items from the Middle East, Asian antiques, and another group of works by Norwich artists, these . There were also rooms devoted to the history of Norwich and of the school.
Barbatus departed; Chris, Nina, and I purchased refreshments at a stand open for a sporting event taking place before rejoining Iohanna for some conversation. The subject was mostly teaching, with which the others were all familiar. We also discussed ClassConn’s upcoming meeting, and talked about spoken Latin we had done or planned to do.
