THIS and THAT: Madame Tussaud´s

http://www.madametussauds.com/

International Museum Day is celebrated worldwide on May 18. This year the theme is Museums (Memory + Creativity) = Social Change.

On this day I have chosen Madame Tussaud´s, a museum my children loved to visit when they were kids. It is a wax museum and one of the most important tourist attractions in London.

Marie Tussaud was born in Strasburg in 1761. Her mother worked as housekeeper for Dr Philippe Curtius - a physician who used to model anatomic subjects in wax. Soon Marie and her mother moved to Paris with him. Dr. Curtius became Marie´s tutor in the techniques of wax portraiture and she was allowed to model great figures of the time like François Voltaire or Benjamin Franklin. In 1794, Dr. Curtis died and Marie inherited the business which had grown under her influence. As the situation in France was becoming chaotic, Marie decided to tour the exhibition round the British Isles. In 1835 Madame Tussaud´s museum opened in London .

In January I enjoyed Madame Tussaud´s museum in Berlin.