Unveiling the Bank of Canada Museum to the World
Well, to a chunk of it anyway. Every year the conference of the International Federation of Finance Museums (IFFM) draws museum directors from five continents to a get-together aimed at sharing best-practices and keeping up with the latest trends in the world of financial museums. Many of the delegates had been following our progress at the Bank of Canada Museum over the past four years, and there was a level of anticipation this year, because they knew I was going to talk to them about our opening and our experience to date.
This year was the Bank’s first opportunity to attend the conference with a museum in fully-operational mode back home, something which gave me the opportunity to step onto the stage as a featured speaker, offering the Bank’s perspective on what our teams accomplished. The presentation was met with enthusiastic interest.
From Paris to Mexico City; Museum Directors Need to Know
Philippe Gineste, Director of CitéCo (Cité de l’Économie et de la Monnaie) in Paris, set to open in 2019, took me aside early on to ask me about the pitfalls and opportunities the Bank of Canada had faced putting together our Museum. His interest was more than passing; his team at CitéCo is gearing up for a full year of trying to get all the myriad things they need done, done. He was happy to know we would offer the benefit of our experience whenever he wanted.
Philip List, Director of the host museum Erste Financial Life Park in Vienna, was happy to compare notes, given that he had just completed a similar museum earlier this year.
Silvia Singer, CEO of the Museo Interactivo de Economía in Mexico City, one of the early inspirations for the new Bank of Canada Museum, told me enthusiastically that she was planning to get to Ottawa as soon as possible to see for herself.
Philip List, Director Erste Financial Life Park, Vienna Austria.
Silvia Singer, CEO of the Museo Interactivo de Economía (MIDE) in Mexico City. The MIDE provided a great deal of inspiration for the Bank of Canada Museum.
A Conference About Museums’ Place in Economic and Financial Literacy
For the past four years now, the Bank of Canada Museum has been a member of the IFFM, an organization promoting the work of financial and central bank museums from North, Central and South America, Europe, Asia and Africa. The October conference featured numerous presentations and workshops covering different aspects of the members’ work, as well as some lively debates on the state of financial and economic literacy in the world.
I was able to participate in a number of workshops with a variety of international colleagues.
IFFM workshop on economic literacy and gender issues.
I was proud to be able to present the new Bank of Canada Museum to museum directors from around the world.
The IFFM draws delegates from the Americas, Europe, Asia and Africa.
Annamaria Lusardi, Academic Director of Global Financial Literacy Centre, Washington DC.
One of the joys of this conference is catching up with colleagues; here I am with Jakub Kunert of the Czech National Bank.
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The Museum Blog
August 30, 2016
Mining the Miners is our third temporary exhibition at the CMH (we reopen in 2017) and it is indeed about the Klondike gold rush. It’s always nice to be able to dovetail our exhibits with those of our host.
Gold Rush! and Mining the Miners
By: Graham Iddon
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August 5, 2016
When I was a kid, I liked going to Canadian Tire with my dad because he gave me the Canadian Tire money that he would receive along with his change.
New Acquisitions
By: David Bergeron
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June 27, 2016
Before they were to be placed in collection storage, these broken dies were evaluated for further conservation treatment. Ultimately, the decision was made to repair the breaks.
Repairing Steel Dies
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June 15, 2016
In May 2013, staff of the Bank of Canada Museum visited BABN and were able to select for the National Currency Collection more than 650 steel dies (small, engraved metal or “intaglio” plates) and other production tools formerly used by the company to prepare the intaglio printing plates.
New Acquisitions
By: Paul S. Berry
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May 24, 2016
On 15 April, the public consultation to select an iconic Canadian woman to appear on a bank note closed. Over 26,000 nominations were received following the Bank of Canada’s open call—a great success.
A bank NOTE-able Woman II
By: Graham Iddon
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May 11, 2016
Canadians, on occasion, have used money as a signboard for political protest, a platform for social commentary and even as a handy notepad on which to record fleeting thoughts before they are lost.
New Acquisitions
By: Paul S. Berry
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April 11, 2016
Representing significant women on national currency is gaining momentum all over the world. At least 12 countries currently feature historically notable women on their money…
A bankNOTEable Woman
By: Graham Iddon
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March 30, 2016
It seems a pretty strange building but now it has a solid roof, glass walls and doors. Doors? Ah, there’s your clue. It’s no skateboard park—it’s the entrance portico for the Bank of Canada Museum.
Museum Reconstruction - Part 4
By: Graham Iddon
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March 15, 2016
This has been an extremely challenging exhibition to develop. We are taking, for us, the unprecedented step of interpreting something that is not only current but continually changing.
Decoding E-Money II
By: Graham Iddon
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