Bringing together theory from disparate fields, including behavioural gerontology, counselling and therapy, applied psychology and historiography, and drawing on research from the UK, the USA and Europe, this is a multi-faceted study of memory and the museum. It explores what Sheldon Annis referred to as the "dream space", the non-rational, affective and reflective experience of encountering material and ourselves within the museum and, for the purpose of this book, within the processes and procedures of making history in museums. It examines the theory of "dream space" in the context of the practical world of museums where so many of the issues of memory, the life span and their connections are brought into sharp focus.; The book has four parts: the relationship of memory to history and the changing place of memory within historiographic and museological theory; the dynamics of memory and its employment in the construction of social knowledge of the past through the medium of exhibitions - in essence, memory as product; the experience of remembering in the museum or through access to museum collections -that is memory as process; and the interplay of product and process experienced

This edited volume gives ample evidence of the variety of views that exist about museums, and will provoke readers to consider museum provision and professionalism in all their forms.

Museums are a city phenomenon, one element within a suite of cultural institutions which most major urban centres support. In the 19th century, museums were established as evidence of urban sophistication, a credential of new and enlightened local government. They aimed to provide vistas significantly broader than the local. Today, however, the agenda is very different. Within the majority of cities there are museums dedicated to exploring the city itself. The contributors consider the making of city histories from very different perspectives and within a number of theoretical frameworks. They use case studies and comparisons of practice; in particular, good practice is highlighted and potential ways forward explored.

This exciting new series recognizes the tremendous potential of museum-based histories and the ways in which they can engage people with ideas about the past. People encounter and use museums on many different levels - personal, social and intellectual - and access meanings that best fit their agendas. Histories in museums can stimulate the imagination, provoke discussion and increase our ability to question what we know. From this it can be deduced that history in museums is as much about the present as it is about the past; as much about how we feel as about what we know; as much about who we are as about who we have been. The first volume in the series, Making Histories in Museums, examines museological features, but deals particularly with hte historiographical issues that have presiously been underplayed. Each contributor looks at theoretical frameworks within a specific field of study, using case studies and comparisons of practice.

Bringing together theory from disparate fields, including behavioural gerontology, counselling and therapy, applied psychology and historiography, and drawing on research from the UK, the USA and Europe, this is a multi-faceted study of memory and the museum. It explores what Sheldon Annis referred to as the "dream space", the non-rational, affective and reflective experience of encountering material and ourselves within the museum and, for the purpose of this book, within the processes and procedures of making history in museums. It examines the theory of "dream space" in the context of the practical world of museums where so many of the issues of memory, the life span and their connections are brought into sharp focus. The book has four parts: the relationship of memory to history and the changing place of memory within historiographic and museological theory; the dynamics of memory and its employment in the construction of social knowledge of the past through the medium of exhibitions - in essence, memory as product; the experience of remembering in the museum or through access to museum collections -that is memory as process; and the interplay of product and pro