Amention of Sir Hugh Beaver's name is unlikely to evoke much response or recognition, but the same is certainly not true of his brainchild.
One day in 1951, while out shooting game on the North Slob in southwestern Ireland, Beaver's hunting party shot at, but missed, some golden plovers. In the discussion that followed, it could not be decided whether the golden plover was Europe's fastest game bird. This led Sir Hugh to the conclusion that there must be numerous questions and debates regarding such superlatives every night in the 81,400 pubs which sold his company's product and, furthermore, that a book of records should be published to arbitrate such discussions.
It happens that Sir Hugh was the managing director of Guinness, famous then and now for its breweries and distilleries, and you probably have guessed the rest. What came out of his idea was the world's all-time global best-seller after the Bible, the Guinness Book of World Records. This definitive book of superlatives has sold 77 million copies in 32 languages around the world.
Along the lines followed by the book, Guinness established a chain of museums across Europe and North America to illustrate and introduce to the public some of the many fascinating facts found there. Now, with the January grand opening of the world's largest Guinness World of Records Museum in Taichung, Asia's residents can get in on the fun as well.
With an ideal location in central Taiwan between Taipei in the north and Kaohsiung in the south, the museum's owners are expecting that about a million visitors a year will come to witness the oddities they have on display. A decision to build the NT$500 million (US$20 million) facility was made after Steve Day, chairman of the museum's Taiwan partner, Golden World Corporation, heard that Guinness was planning a build a museum in Beijing.
With some help from the British Trade and Cultural Office in Taipei, Day persuaded Guinness to come to Taichung instead. Golden World is a fully owned subsidiary of the world's largest hat manufacturer, the San Sun Hat & Cap Company, and the Guinness museum chain is now owned by the Orlando, Florida-based Ripley Entertainment Inc., known for its Ripley's Believe It Or Not museums and cartoon features.
Unique Architecture
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The Taichung museum's architecture is unique among all Guinness museums: the main A-frame hall resembles a giant Guinness book, the restroom is a soccer ball, and the snack bar is a giant hamburger. |
The museum complex's appearance itself is hard to miss and makes its purpose quite clear. The main A-frame-type hall is designed to resemble a giant Guinness book, half-opened and turned on its side. Other buildings are just as unique. A giant hamburger (world's most popular food) is a snack bar, a giant Rubic's Cube (most popular puzzle game) is a gift shop, and a giant soccer ball (most popular sport) is a restroom. Other buildings include a cinema, actually a giant computer monitor where Chinese-language Guinness movies are shown, and a library.
The entire 10,000-square-meter area was designed by the London-based Brennan & Whalley Limited, which has done other Guinness museums and was one of the designers of the excellent National Museum of Natural Science, also located in Taichung. The company was responsible for project management, supervision of the manufacture of exhibits and graphics, coordination of lighting and audio visual aspects, and other work. All sculptures and exhibits were manufactured in the U.K.
The result is a museum which not only meets strict standards but measures up to any similar facility in the West. This effect is heightened by the fact that English signs and displays are the rule rather than the exception for all indoor and outdoor displays. There are also signs in Chinese, and guides are available for all tours.
Foreign consultants working on the museum, such as Bill Myhill, former design director for Ripley, said that the Taichung facility is unique among all Guinness museums by virtue of its architecture and its entertainment complex, which includes a food outlet, gift shop, and outdoor display areas.
Walking through the front gate, past a life-size statue of the world's tallest man (272 centimeters), visitors encounter a colorful, creative and hands-on approach to the displays. The grounds are covered with other life-like statues of individuals in action, who ran, walked, kissed, crawled, push-upped, dove, pulled, high-jumped, clapped, and limboed their way into history. These statues range from a gentleman who continuously clapped for 58 hours and nine minutes to St. Simeon, who, for whatever reason, spent 45 years on a pillar.
There are also several live exhibits, including a pair of ostriches (world's largest bird), two camels (largest desert animal), and a lion taming show.
Inside the main hall are 1,148 square meters of displays organized into categories such as human feats, animals, food, weather, farming, entertainment, and much more. Colorful exhibits and audiovisual displays are used to convey a staggering variety of intriguing facts, such as the world's oldest cat (34 years), fastest public speaker (President John F. Kennedy--327 words per minute) or loudest snore (93 decibels).
Hands-on Approach
The hands-on approach only makes things more fun. Outside, visitors can try out one of St. Simeon's pillars, or attempt to match the long-jump record. Inside, they can try on the tallest man's coat and shoes for size, or try to out-weigh the world's heaviest man.
Incidentally, the museum also is the site of the Asia Witness Center, which will act as an official witness and certifying organization for those in the Asia-Pacific region who seriously seek to break records. Be forewarned, however, that only about 300 out of 30,000 annual attempts are accepted by Guinness.
To spice things up even more, world record-holders will be invited to visit the museum four or five times a year, according to vice general manager Alvin Cheng. For example, Walter Arfeuille, a man who pulls four loaded buses with his teeth,will perform daily until Apr. 10. A cast of multinational performers, including a group of Hungarian cancan dancers, is also performing at the museum on a long-term basis.
In honor of the official opening of the museum on Jan. 16, the former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony. This was the first time Lady Thatcher has cooperated with a private Taiwanese company and the second time she has visited Taiwan.
With so much to offer, the new museum will surely be immensely popular with local and foreign visitors alike. Were he alive today, Sir Hugh would, no doubt, be very proud.
The museum is open daily from 8:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. and is located at 77 Chaofu Road. From the freeway, head downtown on Taichung Harbor Road to the second traffic light, and turn right at the Guinness museum sign. Admission is NT$280 for adults and NT$150 for children. For more information, call (04) 259-7123 or fax (04) 259-7119.