Page:The museum, (Jackson, Marget Talbot, 1917).djvu/41

Rh tectural feature in these staircases. One of the worst examples of this fault is in the Kaiser Friedrich Museum in Berlin. As we have saidelsewhere, the museum is so situated that it can never grow. Under the circumstances one would expect every available inch of space to be used for exhibition purposes, but, alas, two enormous staircases, one at either end of the building, absorb much useful exhibition space. Had the architect been willing to do without the huge structure in the front of the building he would have gained a large amount of space. The large staircase at the back of the building would have been quite sufficient for all ordinary purposes, especially when it is remembered that there are in addition three service staircases, any one of them large enough to amply take care of a good-sized crowd in case of fire or other danger. Two elevators add to the means of access from one floor to another. (See plan, page 17.) Many officials are looking toward the future for a type of museum building all on one floor, which shall be without stairs (cf. the Glyptothek, Munich). There is nothing more discouraging to the would-be museum visitor than to arrive inside the door and find himself confronted by a seemingly interminable flight of stairs which must be mounted before he attains his object. In the Boston Museum, for instance, the collections on