New York Historical Society

I had never before been to the New York Historical Society, but I recently had the chance to go shortly after its renovation with Cynthia.

America's history is rich and colorful and the museum serves to celebrates it. In the lobby, I saw the real pistols that Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton used in a duel. I also saw interactive, quasi-augmented reality screens that helped me learn about different artifacts. I was also introduced to the new smart phone app connected to the museum. I never got to use it, but it's interesting to consider how new media is influencing the museum-goer's experience.

I also saw paintings that explored the notion of taste. These included America's dramatized landscapes, and I particularly remember one painting that combined imagery of New York City with Ancient Greece. On the top floor, I viewed a vast collection of artifacts, including election buttons, lamps (where I remembered Abigail who lives in Connecticut), chairs, daggers, and busts. I saw a ghostly display of chairs with outfits slumped on top of them as though a crowd had just vanished from them. I learned about voodoo and lots of other stuff which now slips my mind (I still have work to do on my memory tricks).

It was a fun visit, followed by a nice walk in Central Park. The weather was lovely.