The one with the dolls

Scotland apparently enjoys its mannequins. I, however, do not.

A quick stop in an Edinburgh secondhand bookshop and a chat with the store owner (Till’s Books, the owner is fantastic), directed me to the Museum of Childhood in the city centre. My cousin had also told me about the People’s Museum, so I was planning on a good solid afternoon of wandering around.

What I was anticipating seemed quite reasonable to me: exhibits behind glass cases, some knowledgeable guides, and maybe some interactive exhibits. To some extent that was correct. At least in the National Museum of Scotland it was, although that contains more than a few interactive exhibits. I’m still not entirely certain that I wasn’t playing with children’s toys, but there were at least 2 other people my age doing the same, so I won’t think too hard on it.

But when I shifted to the Museum of Childhood, it was a whole new ball game. Immediately I was greeted (in a very poorly lit room) by several utterly terrifying mannequins. As the museum progresses, things keep getting weirder. There is a carousel horse that I am convinced is haunted, and a hall of school uniforms and tea party outfits that have misshapen faces – I wasn’t sure if they were supposed to represent children or vaguely humanoid aliens.

Near that level of the museum, there is a history of dolls. In this gallery, there was absolutely no one else on the floor. It was just me and a bunch of dolls. One of the exhibits included a series of grimacing dolls that appear to have murdered the doll above them. I attempted to get out of there so quickly that I actually knocked over a chair on my way out, which then led me to trip over the chair and nearly face plant into the next creepy doll exhibit.

Now that I’ve really sold you on visiting the museum, I will say that it is quite cool. It’s a very thorough walk through of the development and growth of childhood, including the history of the jigsaw puzzle. The People’s Museum, while also rife with startling mannequins, is also very interesting. AND, they’re both free.