Benn Gunn Baker
The Great Court at the British Museum
Great Court: history and design
In the original Robert Smirke design the courtyard was meant to be a garden. However, in 1852–7 the Reading Room and a number of bookstacks were built in the courtyard to house the library department of the Museum and the space was lost.
In 1997, the Museum’s library department was relocated to the new British Library building in St Pancras and there was an opportunity to re-open the space to public.
An architectural competition was launched to re-design the courtyard space. There were over 130 entries and it was eventually won by Lord Foster.
The competition brief had three aims:
Revealing hidden spaces
Revising old spaces
Creating new spaces
The £100 million project was supported by grants of £30 million from the Millennium Commission and £15.75 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The Great Court was opened on 6 December 2000 by Her Majesty the Queen.
The Great Court at the British Museum
Great Court: history and design
In the original Robert Smirke design the courtyard was meant to be a garden. However, in 1852–7 the Reading Room and a number of bookstacks were built in the courtyard to house the library department of the Museum and the space was lost.
In 1997, the Museum’s library department was relocated to the new British Library building in St Pancras and there was an opportunity to re-open the space to public.
An architectural competition was launched to re-design the courtyard space. There were over 130 entries and it was eventually won by Lord Foster.
The competition brief had three aims:
Revealing hidden spaces
Revising old spaces
Creating new spaces
The £100 million project was supported by grants of £30 million from the Millennium Commission and £15.75 million from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The Great Court was opened on 6 December 2000 by Her Majesty the Queen.