Whaling Museum Dedicates International Gallery

The Whaling Museum dedicated the newly constructed International Gallery to museum members Friday night.

The gallery is open to the public beginning Saturday and will display artifacts that have not been showcased in a number of years.

Museum President and CEO James Russell says the exhibit will open the eyes of visitors.

The gallery contains artifacts, paintings, journals, and scrolls from all over the world depicting the historic Whaling Era.

Museum curator Dr. Christina Connett says the scrolls will be periodically changed to keep things fresh.

"Even the [scrolls] that are in there will be turned from time to time so that the scenes will change. After a period of time we'll switch out the scrolls entirely so that the public has something new to see but also gives the work a chance to rest."

The new gallery will lead into the soon-to-be- finished Wattles Jacobs Education Center, which is scheduled to be complete in September.