Eighteen years after completing the fit-out works for the Hunterian Museum at the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 2005, BECK has successfully completed the fit out of the newly designed Hunterian Museum part of the major building redevelopment by architects Hawkins Brown at Lincoln’s Inn Fields. The Hunterian Museum reopens today, the 16^th of May, with more than 3500 objects and specimens on display.

The museum is named after 18th century surgeon anatomist John Hunter and has his collection of specimens at its heart. Hunter’s collection was bought by the government in 1799 and given over to the care of the Company of Surgeons, later the Royal College of Surgeons of England. It first opened at the Lincoln’s Inn Field site in 1813. The new museum traces the story of the art and science of surgery from ancient times to the present day.

Chris Lawrenson, Board Director

The recent major construction of ten new Museum Rooms and shop is on the ground floor of the new building. The BECK team began on site when the space was a shell and works involved a museum base build package including, flooring, ceilings, partitions, decorations, Mechanical and Electrical extensions.  Following completion and a dust free milestone the team continued with the fit-out package which included joinery, Corian and metalwork setworks, models, lighting, graphics as well as co-ordination of showcases and AV Hardware.

Work on the project began in May 2021.  The rest of the building remained fully operational, and the team worked around ‘no noise periods’ timed for lectures and exams.  Also taken into high consideration, were containing dust from the works and taking care over the impact of deliveries.

The BECK team salvaged original, un-reusable marble from the site wherever possible.  To celebrate reaching the important dust free milestone in June 2022, we created bespoke, engraved drinks coasters from the marble, as gifts for the talented team behind the redesign.

The brand-new space has seen the BECK team bring to life the beautiful designs from Casson Mann.  The team also worked with Fraser Randall, Hawkins Brown, Electrosonic, ISO Design, Click Netherfield and de Pass Montgomery.  The new incarnation of the museum uses a combination of modern AV hardware & bespoke set-works to allow visitors to enjoy, for the first time, an interactive experience with the collections.

The project concluded 19 months after it began, in December 2022.

Chris Lawrenson, Board Director at BECK says: “It is always an honour to return to the site of a former project, having been entrusted by our clients to deliver fit-out works for them once again.  The Hunterian Museum enjoys a rich history and has unique requirements for the fragile and historically important specimens in John Hunter’s collection.  The team took great care to ensure the collection is preserved correctly, in beautiful setworks with accompanying high-quality graphics for visitors to enjoy.  It has been fantastic to work with the Royal College of Surgeons of England, Casson Mann, Fraser Randall and the entire client team to give the gallery spaces and shop a new lease of life.”

Dawn Kemp, Director of Museums and Special Collections at the Royal College of Surgeons of England says: ‘’The BECK team, especially Ben, Paul, Erik and Chris, have been brilliant to work with. They have paid great attention to the detail and quality the new Hunterian Museum design required.  BECK realised Casson Mann’s elegant and magical design and have created a beautiful space which I hope will inspire a new generation of followers and friends for decades to come.’’

ENDS.

Notes to editors:

1. The new Hunterian Museum website can be found here: hunterianmuseum.org.
2. Follow the Hunterian Museum on Twitter (@HunterianLondon) and Instagram (@hunterianmuseum) for news and further information.
3. The Hunterian Museum has a long association with the Royal College of Surgeons of England. Following John Hunter’s death in 1793, the UK Government bought his museum, of 14,000 specimens and preparations, and in 1799 gave it into the safekeeping of the Company of Surgeons (later the Royal College of Surgeons of England) for medical education and training. The independent Board of Trustees of the Hunterian Collection was established to oversee the long-term care and use of Hunter’s Collection. The new building erected in Lincoln’s Inn Fields to accommodate the Museum first opened in May 1813.
4. The Royal College of Surgeons of England provides world-class education, assessment and development to 30,000 surgeons, dental professionals and members of the wider surgical and dental care teams, at all stages of their career. Our vision is to see excellent surgical care for everyone. We do this by setting professional standards, facilitating research and championing the best outcomes for patients.