1 city district
4 museums
Enchanted journey through
the right-bank museums
1 city district – 4 museums
Enchanted journey through
the right-bank museums
Complete this workbooklet as you visit
the four museums and have it stamped
at the reception of each institution and
at the Botanic Shop in the Botanical
Gardens.
You will be given a mystery souvenir
at the end of your visit to the fourth
museum.
Don’t forget to have your workbooklet
stamped at each museum you visit !
Workbooklets can be obtained from all
four participating institutions:
Ariana Museum,
Museum of the History of Science,
International Red Cross and Red
Crescent Museum and
Conservatory and Botanical Gardens.
The treasure hunt starts on Museum
Night and will run until 31 August 2016.
m
useu
aM
n
Aria
d
l Re
a
n
io Red
rnat
Inte oss and useum
Cr ent M
c
Cres
e
of th ce
m
eu
en
Mus of Sci
ory
Hist
d
y an
r
o
t
s
a
rden
serv
Con ical Ga
n
Bota
Gold or porcelain ...?
at the Ariana Museum
In the 17th century, people said that porcelain had magic
properties because it cracked if it came into contact with any
kind of poison. Research has of course proved that untrue !
It might seem strange to us today, but in the 17th century
the one was as valuable as the other. Friedrich-August I, alias
August the Strong (1670-1733), Prince-Elector of Saxony,
a passionate collector of oriental porcelain, was well aware
of that. He commissioned an alchemist, Johann Friedrich
Böttger (1682-1719), and a scientist, Count Ehrenfried Walter
von Tschirnhaus (1651-1708), to uncover the secret of how
porcelain – known at the time as “white gold” – was made.
The magic of porcelain
In 1710, Böttger successfully presented Prince-Elector August
the Strong with hard porcelain similar to that made in China.
That same year, the prince founded in Dresden the first porcelain
manufactory in Europe and … the magic was complete! The
creativity and excellence of the painter Johann Gregorius
Höroldt (1696-1775) and the modeller Johann Joachim Kändler
(1706-1775) helped to make the Meissen manufactory famous.
At home, you can decorate a white plate.
Make a drawing of your design and then decorate your plate. Leave
it to dry for 24 hours before placing it in the oven for 35 minutes at
150°C to allow it to set. Make sure you ask an adult to help you!
You will need:
1 white porcelain
plate
1 paint brush
« pébéo »
ceramic paints
Look for this object in Room 6.
Which display case is it in? .........................................
Look carefully – there are several of them!
What is missing? ...........................................................
Draw what is missing.
Like a bird ...
At the Red Cross Museum
At the end of Hans Andersen’s fairy tale, the ugly duckling
turns into a majestic …………….........................….
Find the one in The Humanitarian Adventure. It was made by
a prisoner held captive by the FARC in Colombia in 2011.
Draw it and, if you like, you can then colour it in at home.
ICRC delegates visit prisons. They make sure that prison
conditions respect human dignity. These objects were made
by prisoners and given to ICRC delegates to thank them for
their visit. Making things cheers prisoners up. It is one way of
escaping from prison to another world. All sorts of things are
often made from recycled material.
The hidden meaning of the fairy tale is about the rejection
of people who are different. Let’s be on the look-out for
discrimination! Go to the interactive wall and make the
symbolic gesture requested.
At home
Make a beautiful
origami swan
to help you remember what
you learnt at the Museum.
Material: a square of paper,
preferably coloured
What materials is it made of? ……………..............
What do you think this object means to the prisoner who
made it? ……………...............….............................
Making the swan: If it helps, watch the video on youtube.com:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZ06OjTJhME
A magic needle at the Museum
of the History of Science
The cardinal points, north, east, south and west, are shown on
maps and on the compass dial by a compass rose.
A compass is an instrument in which a magnetic metal
needle moves freely on a pivot and points to the magnetic
north. Probably invented by the Chinese, it was introduced
into Europe in the Middle Ages and was perfected over
the years to become a vital navigation and orientation
instrument.
Colour in the compass rose
shown here and write in the
4 cardinal points N, E, S and
W and the 4 intermediary
directions (NW, NE, SW, SE).
A compass has several different uses, for example:
- To point to the magnetic north
- To find your way in the countryside
- To locate your position on a map by pinpointing familiar
places on the ground
Go to the exhibition “T’es où?” (“Where are you?”) on the
first floor of the Museum of the History of Science and
find the compass shown below.
How many compasses can
you count in the exhibition?
...........................................................
Write down the caption for the
compass shown here.
...........................................................
...........................................................
...........................................................
A compass at home
You need a cork stopper,
a needle, a magnet, a bowl
and some water.
- Cut a slice of cork about 5 mm thick.
- Rub the tip of the needle against the magnet until it becomes magnetized.
- Pour some water into the bowl and place the cork slice on it.
- Gently place the needle on the cork slice. When the needle has stopped moving, use an ordinary compass to check where it
is pointing.
- Be careful not to put the compass near metal objects!
The charm of flowers at the
Conservatory and Botanical Gardens
A short history
Mr de Candolle and Mr Redouté could not resist the charms
of flowers. Our prestigious library, which is open to the public,
houses a large collection of beautiful books full of illustrations.
It is an important part of the legacy of the long botanical
tradition in Geneva!
In Homer’s “Iliad”, Iris was the messenger of
all the gods. For the poets of that time, the
rainbow was the track she left behind as she
sped from Olympus towards Earth bearing
good news. Her name therefore means
“Rainbow”.
Other names also come from the names of
flowers or plants.
Find two girl’s names and one boy’s name
and write them here.
.................................................................
.................................................................
One plant in the iris family is featured on this
information panel outside the library.
Find the information panel, which will give you the
answer to the question:
What is the plant’s name?
..........................................................................................
.................................................................
Don’t be too shy to go into the newly
refurbished library!