SIGHTS
Long hallways, high ceilings being supported by columns, bright lighting, historical pieces behind and under glass, displays that are roped off from public access, items standing on raised platforms and pedestals, placards with information about the various pieces, framed artwork on the walls, hieroglyphics (on actual stone pieces or depicted in photographs), faded tapestries, dinosaur skeletons arranged throughout the room, sculptures and statuary, busts of famous people from history, mummies in glass cases, tribal masks, dolls and toys from another time period, old airplanes and other vehicles, ancient books and scrolls, costumes and headdresses, suits of armor, a display of weapons from a certain culture or time period, jewelry and gems, cracked and chipped dishes, re-creations of extinct animals, urns and pottery, crowns and diadems, figurines, people studying the artifacts and leaning close to read placards, guests sitting on benches to rest, groups of school children, tour groups moving through with a docent, people taking pictures (without flashes), artists drawing inspiration from the items (sketching, writing about them, etc.)
SOUNDS
Whispers, people discussing the displays in quiet voices, echoes, footsteps on tile or marble floors, the carrying voice of a docent giving a tour, the scratch of pens on paper as people take notes, children laughing and running, voices narrating short films in closed rooms at the top of each hour, ambient sounds playing over a speaker in a themed area or room (battle sounds in a room dedicated to World War II, desert noises in a room depicting life in ancient Mesopotamia), teachers shushing children, the squeak of stroller wheels, babies fussing, the hum of a vacuum cleaner or floor polisher, the rattle of paper as maps are opened and folded
SMELLS
Cleaning chemicals, the smell of old items (however carefully maintained they are), must, dust, leather, stone, the papery smell of old books, fabric that is slowly decaying
TASTES
Some settings have no specific tastes associated with them beyond what the character might bring into the scene (chewing gum, mints, lipstick, cigarettes, etc.). For scenes like these, where specific tastes are sparse, it would be best to stick to descriptors from the other four senses.
TEXTURES AND SENSATIONS
The hard floor under one’s feet, smooth glass under one’s fingertips, leaning in to see an exhibit and feeling the press of a velvet rope against one’s thighs, sitting on a hard bench, the glossy feel of a museum map, the smoothness of a dinosaur bone or fossil on display for the purpose of tactile exploration, a child’s hand in one’s grip
POSSIBLE SOURCES OF CONFLICT
Tripping and falling into a display
Accidentally damaging one of the pieces
Seeing an inaccuracy in an exhibit and feeling compelled to challenge it
Being in charge of a child who insists on touching everything
Attending with a pokey friend who must see every artifact and read every placard
Attending with someone who criticizes each exhibit or makes a show of wanting to be anywhere else
Visiting with the intent of seeing a specific exhibit only to find it closed to the public
Being bored but unable to leave
A break-in or theft
A bomb threat
Reports of items moving themselves or another supernatural event taking place
Being present during a heist or lockdown
Malfunctioning sprinklers that damage the exhibits
PEOPLE COMMONLY FOUND HERE
Art aficionados, conservators, curators, directors, docents, guests, historians, museum donors, school groups (children, teachers, and chaperones), tour groups, vacationers
RELATED SETTINGS THAT MAY TIE IN WITH THIS ONE
Rural Volume: Ancient ruins
Urban Volume: Antiques shop, art gallery
SETTING NOTES AND TIPS
This entry contains references to items found in history or science museums, since these are the most common. But museums have become quite specialized, dedicated to sports, specific pastimes, children’s interests, arts and crafts, indigenous peoples, famous or notorious people, specific regions, time periods, military interests, entertainment, oddities, the supernatural, and many more areas of focus. Museums are also becoming more virtual and interactive, so keep that in mind as an option. To enhance a scene set in a museum, consider one that highlights an out-of-the-ordinary topic—or even one that is a figment of the author’s imagination.
SETTING DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE
Our shoes shuffled and echoed as we walked into the small room dedicated to statuary from ancient Ephesus. The docent’s voice faded as I studied the headless sculptures, trying to figure out how the sculptors had achieved such detail: the folds in the robes, the flawless hands and feet. My fingers itched, wanting to touch the fingernails and sandals and feel the fine cracks that ran through the stone.
Techniques and Devices Used: Multisensory descriptions
Resulting Effects: Reinforcing emotion