Awax museum orwaxworks usually consists of a collection ofwax sculptures representing famous people from history and contemporary personalities exhibited in lifelike poses, wearing real clothes.
Some waxmuseums have a special section dubbed the "Chamber of Horrors", in which the more grisly exhibits are displayed. Some collections are more specialized, as, for example, collections of wax medical models once used for training medical professionals. Many museums or displays in historical houses that are not wax museums as such use wax figures as part of their displays. The origin of wax museums goes back to the early 18th century at least, and wax funeraleffigies of royalty and some other figures exhibited by their tombs had essentially been tourist attractions well before that.
The making of life-size wax figures wearing real clothes grew out of the funeral practices of European royalty. In theMiddle Ages it was the habit to carry the corpse, fully dressed, on top of the coffin at royal funerals, but this sometimes had unfortunate consequences in hot weather, and the custom of making aneffigy in wax for this role grew, again wearing actual clothes so that only the head and hands needed wax models. After the funeral these were often displayed by the tomb or elsewhere in the church, and became a popular attraction for visitors, which it was often necessary to pay to view.[1]
TheWestminster Abbey Museum in London has a collection of British royal funeral effigies made of varying materials going back to that ofEdward III of England's wooden likeness[2] (died 1377), as well as those of figures such as the naval heroHoratio Nelson, andFrances Stewart, Duchess of Richmond, who also had her parrot stuffed and displayed. From the funeral ofCharles II in 1680 they were no longer placed on the coffin but were still made for later display.[1] The effigy of Charles II, open-eyed and standing, was displayed over his tomb until the early 19th century, when all the Westminster effigies were removed from the abbey itself.[citation needed] Nelson's effigy was a pure tourist attraction, commissioned the year after his death in 1805, and his burial not in the Abbey but inSt Paul's Cathedral after a government decision that major public figures should in future be buried there. Concerned for their revenue from visitors, the Abbey decided it needed a rival attraction for admirers of Nelson.[3]
In European courts including that of France the making of posed wax figures became popular.Antoine Benoist (1632–1717) was a French court painter and sculptor in wax toKing Louis XIV. He exhibited forty-threewax figures of the FrenchRoyal Circle at his residence in Paris. Thereafter, the king authorized the figurines to be shown throughout France. His work became so highly regarded thatJames II of England invited him to visitEngland in 1684. There he executed works of the English king and members of his court. A seated figure ofPeter the Great of Russia survives, made by an Italian artist, after the Tsar was impressed by the figures he saw at theChateau of Versailles. The Danish court painterJohann Salomon Wahl executed figures of the Danish king and queen in about 1740.[4]
The 'Moving Wax Works of the Royal Court of England', a museum or exhibition of 140 life-size figures, some apparently with clockwork moving parts, opened by Mrs Mary inFleet Street in London was doing excellent business in 1711.Philippe Curtius, waxwork modeller to the French court, opened hisCabinet de Cire as a tourist attraction in Paris in 1770, which remained open until 1802. In 1783 this added aCaverne des Grands Voleurs ("Cave of the Great Thieves"), an early "Chamber of Horrors". He bequeathed his collection to his protégéeMarie Tussaud, who during theFrench Revolution madedeath masks of the executed royals.[5]
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Madame Tussauds, historically associated withLondon, is the most famous name associated with wax museums, although it was not the earliest wax museum, as is sometimes thought. In 1835 Madame Tussaud established her first permanent exhibition inLondon'sBaker Street. By the late 19th century most large cities had some kind of commercial wax museum, like theMusée Grévin in Paris or thePanoptikum Hamburg, and for a century these remained highly popular. In the late 20th century it became harder for them to compete with other attractions.
Today there are also Madame Tussauds in 22 locations, includingDam Square, Amsterdam;Berlin;Hong Kong;Shanghai; and in theUnited States: theVenetian Hotel inLas Vegas, Nevada,Times Square in New York City,Washington, D.C., andHollywood. Madame Tussauds opened its first museum in India atNew Delhi in 2017.
Louis Tussaud's wax museum inSan Antonio, Texas, is across the street from the historicAlamo Mission. Others are located on the Canadian side ofNiagara Falls, andGrand Prairie, Texas.
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Among the most notable wax museums is theLife of Christ Museum located inFatima, the city internationally known for the phenomenon of theapparitions of the Virgin Mary that allegedly occurred inPortugal. Tony Julius, director of the London company that manufactured thewax figures and former collaborator of theMadame Tussauds Museum, considered it the third best wax museum in the world.
One of the most popular and famous wax museums in the United States for decades was TheMovieland Wax Museum inBuena Park, California, nearKnott's Berry Farm. The museum opened in 1962 and through the years added many wax figures of famous show business figures. Several stars attended the unveilings of the wax incarnations and some added their handprints, footprints, and/or signatures in cement there alaGrauman's Chinese Theatre. The museum was profiled on a number of television programs and occasionally referenced on TV dramas given its longtime success as a tourist attraction, no doubt in part due to the close proximity to Knott's Berry Farm andDisneyland. The museum closed its doors on October 31, 2005, after years of dwindling attendance.
A very similar museum occasionally confused with the Movieland Wax Museum is theHollywood Wax Museum located inHollywood, California which features almost exclusively figures of movie actors displayed in settings associated with their roles in popular movies. This group of museums includesHollywood Wax Museum Branson inBranson, Missouri along withHollywood Wax Museum Pigeon Forge inPigeon Forge, Tennessee andHollywood Wax Museum Myrtle Beach inMyrtle Beach, South Carolina. With the original location having been developed in the mid-1960s, this group of museums went against the late 20th century trend of declining wax museum attendance, with the Branson location having undergone a substantial expansion and remodeling in 2008 and 2009 including an animated ride and a mirror maze.
Another popular wax museum is the Musée Conti Wax Museum inNew Orleans, Louisiana, which features wax figures portraying the city's history as well as a "Haunted Dungeon" section of wax figures of famous characters from horror films and literature. This museum is now closed and the Conti building was converted into condos. The museum was rumored to reopen atJazzland theme park some indefinite date in the future but that park itself closed before long.[6] Several of the wax figures are now on display inDarrow, Louisiana at The Great River Road Museum nearHoumas House.[7]
Another popular wax museum in the U.S. is theWax Museum at Fisherman's Wharf inSan Francisco, California.
BibleWalk is a Christian wax museum inMansfield, Ohio.[8][9] It has received attention for its use of celebrity wax figures in its religious scenes,[10] originally a cost-saving measure when new wax figures were deemed too expensive.[8]
TheRoyal London Wax Museum was open in downtownVictoria, British Columbia, Canada, from 1970 to 2010 in the Steamship Terminal building, it featured "royalty to rogues and the renowned." It was forced to close when the building required seismic upgrades.
TheNational Wax Museum inDublin, Ireland is a wax museum which hosts well over a hundred figures. For many years it has had only one sculptor, PJ Heraty, who continued producing figures even while the museum was closed. Meanwhile, it could be re-opened at a new location. During the last few years some other new wax museums are starting around the world. In 2009 Dreamland Wax Museum opened in Gramado, in the south of Brazil.
In Italy there are two popular wax museums: theRome Wax Museum and theGazoldo degli Ippoliti Wax Museum, inprovince of Mantua.
The National Presidential Wax Museum[citation needed] in Keystone, South Dakota is the only wax museum in the world to feature every U.S. president. Their exhibits also include other notable figures from history such as General George Custer, Alexander Graham Bell, Thomas Edison, and Sitting Bull. Originally created by the famed sculptor Katherine Stubergh, the museum includes death and life masks of notable Hollywood celebrities including Mae West and Sid Grauman. Their most revered exhibit is a depiction of George W. Bush standing on the rubble of the World Trade Center with NYFD fireman Bob Beckwith following the attacks on September 11, 2001.
India's first wax museum opened in December 2005 in Kanyakumari. Now located to Kanyakumari Railway Station it contains wax statues of celebrities at Multi Functional Complex Kanyakumari. The biggest wax museum in India namedMother's Wax Museum was opened in November 2014 inNew Town, Kolkata.[11] Another branch opened in July 2008 at the historical site of Old Goa with a collection of religious statues.
