National Museum of Scotland

The National Museum of Scotland is the national museum for Scotland, it comprises of the Royal Museum and the Museum of Scotland.

The National Museum of Scotland stands on Chambers Street in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is comprised of two separate buildings that are internally connected, the Royal Museum and the Museum of Scotland. While both are museums they fulfill different roles.

The Royal Museum side of the National Museum of Scotland houses exhibits and artifacts from throughout the world. As with most general museums, the subjects of the Royal Museum include natural history, art, technology, geology and science. There are also a range of temporary exhibits, which vary from time to time. The current exhibit is a collection of Picasso paintings.

It could be said that the National Museum of Scotland was first opened in 1861, when its first section, the Royal Museum began construction. Although, as the National Museum of Scotland is comprised of two museums, it could be said that it did not come into existence until 1998, when the Museum of Scotland was built.

The Museum of Scotland is the second section of the National Museum of Scotland. Its exhibits are comprised of various Scottish pieces found in the Royal Museum in 1998 and the collection of the now non-existent National Museum of Antiques of Scotland. To this day the predominant theme in the Museum of Scotland side of the National Museum of Scotland is Scottish history. Some of the most notable items in the displays include the Monymusk reliquary (which were said to house the remains of Saint Columba), the Scottish flag raised over the Battle of Culloden and a collection of paintings from various Scottish artists.

Beyond these exhibits, the National Museum of Scotland is boasted by some to be an exhibit in itself. More specifically, Museum of Scotland is built out of Moray sandstone and in a design brimming with various features in reference to Scottish history.