O Gabinete de Curiosidades da Universidade de Coimbra: uma proposta museológica e científica / The Cabinet of Curiosities at the University of Coimbra: a museological and scientific initiative

Resumo Os gabinetes de curiosidades constituem a origem do museu moderno. Na utopia da Wunderkammer existe a aspiração à convivência entre arte e ciência. Como docente do novo Curso de Philosofia Natural da Universidade de Coimbra (1772), Portugal contratou o naturalista italiano Domingos Vandelli, que transportou consigo uma coleção, com objetos do seu gabinete em Pádua, à qual anexou uma outra coleção, recolhida em Portugal (1764-1768), repositório ainda não tributário do paradigma naturalista de Lineu. É com fundamento na descrição dessas duas coleções que defendemos a relevante proposta - para a ciência e para a museologia - do Gabinete de Curiosidades do Museu da Ciência da Universidade de Coimbra, inaugurado em maio de 2022.

Abstract Cabinets of curiosities are the origin of modern museums. The utopia these Wunderkammer contain also includes aspirations for art and science to coexist. The Italian naturalist Domingos Vandelli was contracted as an instructor for the new course in natural philosophy at the University of Coimbra (1772), and brought objects from his own cabinet in Padua; he combined these with another collection mounted in Portugal (1764-1768), which did not yet conform to Linneus's naturalistic paradigm. Based on descriptions of these two collections, we defend the important initiative underway at the Cabinet of Curiosities at the University of Coimbra's Museum of Science, which was inaugurated in May 2022.

La mirada que pasa: museos, educación pública y visualización de la evidencia científica / The passing eye: museums, public education, and the visualization of scientific evidence

En este artículo se presentan algunos problemas ligados a la historia de los museos. El énfasis en las capacidades y misiones a cumplir por los museos no necesariamente habla del poder de los museos para crear hábitos o imponer significados, pueden remitir a la debilidad de los mismos y a la necesidad de apelar a dicha retórica para atraer la atención de los favores y los presupuestos gubernamentales. Por ello, quedarse en el aspecto monumental, representativo o metafórico de los museos oscurece la historia de estas instituciones y de las prácticas allí consolidadas, naturalizando la separación entre espacio de investigación y espacios para el público y dejando para el historiador el papel de profano observador de las 'catedrales de la ciencia'.

In this examination of certain issues related to the history of museums. An emphasis on the functions and missions entrusted to museums does not necessarily reflect the power museums have to create habits or shape meanings. To the contrary, this may reflect the actual fragility of museums and their need to resort to rhetoric to attract governmental favors and funds. Therefore, concentrating on the monumental, representative, or metaphorical aspects of museums obscures the history of these institutions and of their consolidated practices, there by naturalizing the separation between research space and public space and leaving the historian to play the role of an uninitiated observer of the 'cathedrals of science'.