Located in the heart of the city of Edmonton, the capital of Alberta in Canada, the Royal Alberta Museum (RAM) opened its doors in its new location in October of 2018. The new space is 419,000 square feet — twice the size of the former museum — making it the largest museum in western Canada!
RAM Building Fast Facts
More than 18,000 m3 of concrete was used to construct the Royal Alberta Museum. That's enough to fill more than seven Olympic sized swimming pools!
Over 2,500 metric tons of steel reinforcement was cast into the concrete. That's heavier than 500 elephants!
Indiana limestone is something we proudly have in common with New York. The limestone that adorns both the interior and exterior was pulled from the same quarry as stones used in the Empire State Building in the United States. (source)
The museum is located on the grounds previously occupied by a Canada Post Office and distribution centre, and there are a few elements in the museum that were preserved from the post office building.
Mosaic murals created by Ernestine Tahedl that were commissioned by the federal government in 1966 for the post office, are now on the façade of the new Royal Alberta Museum building (above left), while terrazzo flooring and limestone panels from the post office are now in the courtyard of the museum's outdoor café (above right).
Planning Your Visit
Location
9810-103a Avenue NW
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Admission
Adult $19, Youth $10, Children 6 and under are Free (check website for multi-day and annual rates)
*Note: The Royal Alberta Museum rests on Treaty Six territory and the homeland of the Métis. Many of the objects in RAM's collections and many of the stories presented in our galleries are Indigenous. In the spirit of reconciliation, and to honour the unique relationship between Indigenous Peoples of Alberta and the Crown, the museum extends free General Admission to Indigenous Peoples.
Opening Hours
Daily 10 am – 6 pm, Thu + Fri 10 am – 8 pm (check website to confirm hours)
The museum is closed on the last Monday of every month, with the exception of the week of spring break (March or April) and December. The museum is always closed on December 24 and 25.
The RAM’s Main Exhibit Spaces
The main spaces of the museum include the Manitou Asiniy (an artifact and space that has great spiritual significance to the Indigenous peoples in both Alberta and Saskatchewan — photos are not permitted), the Natural History Hall, Human History Hall, Children’s Gallery, and Bug Gallery.
Natural History Hall
This is one of my favourite spaces because it contains fossils of ancient mammals, mammoths, and dinosaurs! Did you know that Alberta is one of the most concentrated areas of dinosaur fossils in the world?!
There are also landscapes to explore, rocks and gemstones, stunning dioramas (see below), and lots of interactive displays for the little ones.
Human History Hall
This hall contains multiple spaces that showcase both permanent and temporary exhibits telling the story of Alberta’s human history — and it has been a vibrant and fascinating one so far!
Beautiful artifacts, handiwork, clothing, and stories from the Indigenous people that lived, and still live, in Alberta are on display.
People from all over the world settled in Alberta and brought with them their costumes, traditions, and cultures (left). They created a new culture, which celebrated new traditions and created products (that we now consider vintage) like you can see in the picture on the right.
There are also feature galleries in the Human History Hall, which on my last visit contained an exhibit showcasing the stories of some of the first black settlers in the province (photo above left), artifacts from WW! (photos above right), and textiles.
Children’s Gallery & Bug Gallery
There is a hand’s on space for the little ones to explore and a bug gallery where you can check out creepy critters from around the world.
The RAM’s Special Exhibit Space
The museum intends to have a touring exhibition in this special exhibit space year-round. Currently, Vikings: Beyond The Legend — the largest touring exhibition of Viking artifacts in the world — is on loan from the National Museum of Denmark (until October 20, 2019).
There are more than 650 artifacts on display, including jewellery, coins, three Viking warships — including the 37-metre Roskilde 6, the longest Viking warship ever found — and 11 interactive stations.
The three sides of a full-scale replica of the Jelling Rune Stone (coloured so you can see the designs better) is shown above. It is often referred to as “Denmark’s birth certificate” because it tells the story of how Christianity became the kingdom’s main religion.
A replica of Thor’s Hammer (above), was worn as a pendant (usually by women) for protection.
Conservation Spaces
A huge part of any museum is what happens behind the scenes in the storage and conservation areas and, for the first time, this museum has made that work more accessible to the public by putting windows into some of these spaces, so you can watch the archaeologists, scientists, and conservationists at work!
Keep your eye out for windows into the labs, and check the website for available tours and talks of these spaces.
