True or false
The conviction that historical relics reflect real life of the past is rooted in the
nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when science was regarded as objective
and free of human attitudes. As one writer observes: ‘Although it is now evident
that material objects are as easily changed as chronicles, public belief in their
authenticity is still very strong: a tangible relic seems real.’ Such conviction was,
until recently, reflected in museum displays. Museums used to look – and some
still do – much like storage rooms of objects packed together in showcases: good
for scholars who wanted to study the subtle differences in design, but not for the
ordinary visitor, to whom it all looked alike. Similarly, the information
accompanying the objects often made little sense to the general public. The content
and format of explanations dated back to a time when the museum was the
exclusive domain of the scientific researcher.
Верно или нет (true or false)
Many people believe that material objects kept in museums are true relics of the
past.