World in a box.

Lisa Jardine presents this documentary about the Cabinets of Curiosities of the 16th century that developed into the first museums. These collections started out as status symbols that fufilled the Renaissance ideals of being curious about the world and hunting out secrets. Philipa Gregory talks about John Tradescant and his son who owned a cabinet of curiosities that developed into 'The Ark', the first collection open to a paying public in 1634. Other collections and collectors covered include The Royal Society Repository, John Woodward and Hans Sloane. Dr Pat Morris talks about methods of taxidermy. Neil MacGregor talks about the Enlightenment Gallery in the British Museum. Simon Chaplin shows us Dr John Hunter's collection of animal and human body parts at the Royal College of Surgeons. Professor Gunther Von Hagens talks about his controversial exhibition 'Bodyworlds'. Since the cracking of the DNA code, ancient objects have been able to tell us more about their origins. The programme concludes by emphasising the importance of preserving museum collections, as we may not know what they may be used for in the future.