Uploaded October 2020 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
Oxford University Museum of Natural History is a unique fusion of architecture, science and art. In this series of illustrated podcasts, recorded to accompany his book Temple of Science: The Pre-Raphaelites and Oxford University Museum of Natural History, John Holmes takes us on a guided tour of the art and architecture of the museum, revealing how leading scientists collaborated with artists of genius to create one of the great masterpieces of the Gothic Revival and Pre-Raphaelite art.
Episode 4
Oxford University Museum of Natural History was not originally simply a museum as we understand it today: It was an entire science faculty. In this episode we see how the museum’s overarching principle of design – that art should be used to teach science and to inspire generations of scientists – was put into practice in some of its less familiar but no less beautiful spaces.
John Holmes is Professor of Victorian Literature and Culture at the University of Birmingham and an Honorary Associate of Oxford University Museum of Natural History.
Oxford University Museum of Natural History is a unique fusion of architecture, science and art. In this series of illustrated podcasts, recorded to accompany his book Temple of Science: The Pre-Raphaelites and Oxford University Museum of Natural History, John Holmes takes us on a guided tour of the art and architecture of the museum, revealing how leading scientists collaborated with artists of genius to create one of the great masterpieces of the Gothic Revival and Pre-Raphaelite art.
Episode 4
Oxford University Museum of Natural History was not originally simply a museum as we understand it today: It was an entire science faculty. In this episode we see how the museum’s overarching principle of design – that art should be used to teach science and to inspire generations of scientists – was put into practice in some of its less familiar but no less beautiful spaces.
John Holmes is Professor of Victorian Literature and Culture at the University of Birmingham and an Honorary Associate of Oxford University Museum of Natural History.
