Ashmolean Museum redesigned to combat 'museum fatigue'

Almost two-thirds of the old building has been demolished to make way for 39 new galleries surrounding a six-storey Portland Stone staircase, flooded with natural light from above.

The £61 million price tag has also bought such basic facilities as a loading bay – something the museum never had before – and the extravagance of the university city’s first roof-top restaurant.

But the over-riding aim has been to double the gallery space and present the museum’s world-class collection of archaeological finds and art - that includes such varied objects as Guy Fawkes' lantern, the death mask of Oliver Cromwell and fragments of Minoean excavations - in a way that is easier to understand.

The galleries have been redesigned along “themes”, with the stress on “cultural connections” over the world, rather than differences, said Dr Christopher Brown, the director of what is the oldest public museum in Britain.

He said of the old layout was fine - “if you had a professor of Aegean archaeology at your elbow”.

The principles of the new design were accessibility and public service, he said.

Debates between curators about whether it has taken the right approach have been fierce, with mutterings that the museum is dumbing-down.

Rick Mather, the architect behind the 11-year project, hoped his design would cut “museum fatigue” among visitors.

“You never feel like you are trapped in a labyrinth, which I certainly did with the old building.”

The majestic neo-classical 1845 front, designed by Charles Cockerell, remains untouched, with all the changes behind the scenes.

In a side-swipe at critics of modern architecture, Mather commented: “We didn’t want to do a pastiche of Cockerell. It would have been an insult and it would have looked stupid.”

Except £15 million of Heritage Lottery Funding, the money has come from private funding, including £10 million from the Linbury Trust, the Sainsbury family’s charitable body.

Oxford University, which underwrote the project, currently faces a £16 million shortfall. Dr Brown noted: “Fundraising continues.”

The university hopes visitor numbers will rise by at least 25 per cent to 500,000.

It re-opens to the public on November 7.