New Robert Burns Birthplace Museum:
A State-of-the-Art Educational Facility
 THE AMBITIOUS new Robert Burns Birthplace Museum project is set to become one of the UK’s most prestigious and historically rich visitor destinations. |
ALLOWAY, Scotland – Costing £21 million, the ambitious new Robert Burns Birthplace Museum project is set to become one of the UK’s most prestigious and historically rich visitor destinations.
This world-class attraction is the largest project the National Trust for Scotland has ever undertaken and will epitomize Scotland’s proud heritage, paying homage to the nation's most heroic son. The museum is set to open Autumn 2010.
The project will be located in Alloway, South Ayrshire (Scotland) in the Burns National Heritage Park and will create a new state-of-the-art museum – the project has also seen the restoration of the Burns cottage and the creation of an Education Pavilion.
In November 2009 the iconic Burns cottage, where Burns was born 250 years ago, underwent a £1 million renovation and reinterpretation, as part of the project.
New audio visual displays bring Burns’ story to life and the area of smallholding around the cottage, where the Burns family kept the livestock that supported them, has also been landscaped to give an impression of the agricultural landscape that existed 250 years ago.
The former Burns Museum has also been transformed into a spacious Education Pavilion which will be the first educational facility in Scotland to have Burns experts on-site. The £1 million restoration marks a major milestone in the progress of the Trust’s Robert Burns Birthplace Museum project.
The new 1,600 metre museum building will provide space for the Burns collection, its interpretation and storage, making it a draw for Burns fans from across the globe and providing a lasting legacy for generations to come.
The building will also provide a world-class exhibition area of 500 metres compared to 120 metres in the existing museum.
The National Trust for Scotland is one of Scotland’s leading conservation charities, which relies on the financial support of its members to fund its important work of caring for the natural and cultural heritage of Scotland for everyone to enjoy.
The Burns National Heritage Park – including the Tam O’Shanter Experience, Burns Cottage, Burns Monument, Statue House, Kirk Alloway and Brig O’ Doon – is open to the public while the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum is being created.
The project will cost in the region of £21 million and this includes generous contributions from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Scottish Government, Scottish Enterprise Ayrshire and South Ayrshire Council.
The National Trust for Scotland is currently involved in a range of fundraising activities to support the project and have still to raise £1.1million.
For more information or to make a donation, please visit www.nts.org.uk/burns.
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