Oxford University Natural History Museum’s glass roof has caused dangerously high temperatures within the building and failed to prevent UV rays from damaging some of the museum’s exhibits, according to Oxford City Council documents. The roof has created a greenhouse effect within the building during recent warm spells in Oxford, with temperatures inside reaching as high as 44 degrees Celsius.
The museum currently holds more than 250,000 specimens. Many of those that are on display are protected from UV light by glass cases, but some rare animal skeletons and skins that are not encased have already been damaged. Temperatures in the museum have regularly been exceeding the recommended 24 degree storage temperature for exhibits.
The glass roof is an iconic feature of the museum, which contributes to the 1850 building’s Grade-I listed status It was refurbished in 2013 at a cost of nearly £2 million. It is thought that UV protective covering was not applied to the rood during the refurbishment as dirt which had accumulated on it had masked the problem.
The museum has applied for permission to apply UV reflective film to the roof and build a new ventilation system. If approved, museum officials hope that this work can be completed by the summer of 2017. They have not revealed how much this work is likely to cost. The plans have been supported by the Arts Council, who first appealed to the museum to address the problem, and Historic England.
The Oxford University Natural History Museum attracts over 600,000 visitors per year. During its history it has been the site of several important scientific events such as the 1860 evolution debate and the first public demonstration of wireless telegraphy in 1894. It is currently home to the world’s most complete dodo specimen.
A spokesperson for the University of Oxford said: “During 2013-14, the University of Oxford completed a major roof restoration project at its Museum of Natural History, which involved the removal of a protective film that had become degraded and patchy. Given the possibility that a new film would end up in a similar condition to the previous one, it was decided instead to protect individual exhibit cases with UV film.
“Since the museum reopened in 2014 we have monitored UV and heat levels closely, and after careful consideration of the potential impact on the few exhibits that are not in cases – including whale skeletons and organic taxidermy exhibits – we have applied for listed building consent to install a solar protective film to the roof of the museum. This will reduce the incoming UV radiation by 99.9%, adding further protection to the museum’s exhibits, none of which have thus far suffered any major deterioration but which are at risk over the longer term. The planned work should also provide a more comfortable experience for our visitors during the summer months.
“Because of the iconic Grade I-listed status of the museum building, steps to manage the environmental conditions in the museum have been taken progressively rather than wholesale, with the impact of each step being assessed along the way.”
