El Museo de Cuatro

Here in the astoundingly gorgeous Museo de Cuatro you will find four of the most beautiful, interesting, enlightening and respective works of art in history.  Our featured works of art will include <em>The Meditations</em> by Marcus Aurelius, The Church of St. Marie Madeleine, Michelangelo’s David and last but not least<em>, The Tale of Genji</em>, written by Murasaki Shikibu.  Located on entirely half the west end of the ship, El Museo de Cuatro will resemble architecture that of the famous Louvre, located in Paris, France.  Not quite as large yet still distinctly beautiful, it incorporates the same feel of great artistic expression.  When you approach El Museo De Cuatro, you will notice the large fountains surrounding our amazing glass pyramid coming from our influence with the Louvre, though originally coming from ancient Egyptian influence.  As you enter the front doors you will notice four long hallways flowing left, right and two diagonally ahead similar to the Louvre.  <!--more-->Each hallway will lead to one of the four artworks featured in our museum.  You will notice the elementary yet interesting artistic expressions along each hallway when you decide on one.  Here on our ship we encourage artistic expression from not only all of our visitors but all of our passengers on our ship.  We supply the guests aboard our ship with supplies needed for that person to voluntarily express themselves in our museum without dishonoring the featured artworks found deep in our museum.  It resembles the ability in everybody to express themselves regardless of ability and is a very important part of our museum.  As you approach either door to a featured work you might notice the rather large men guarding the entrance.  These men are highly trained in all forms of defense and all stand a towering 7’8’’ tall, and weigh an outstanding 400 pounds.  Obviously these are not our only forms of security yet it does quickly change anyone’s thought of attempt of theft.  Other security information cannot be mentioned considering it is highly confidential information for the simple fact the technology of this security is highly imaginable.  Although it is still completely impossible to get past this security system so we will share with you anyway.  There are microscopic cameras covering every single millimeter of the museum in high definition picture, so nothing goes unseen.  These cameras of course are connected to high speed recorders that are enabled to recognize suspicious activity here in the museum.  Once the museum is closed at the end of the night, the laser security system will take effect, creating beams of light measuring at 20,000 degrees F., that cover the entire area of each hallway from floor to vaulted ceiling.  That will conclude our description of security for other information is necessary to keep confidential.  We hold these four works in our museum very highly and go to all heights to ensure their protection.

As you enter El Museo de Cuatro down the first hallway to the left you will find preserved the original writings of Marcus Aurelius’ <em>The Meditations</em>.  This collection of the former Roman emperor’s thoughts, ideas and emotions, is considered one of the most influential writings in philosophy.  The original writings themselves are located in a large case made from a rather large clear cut diamond, making the case itself clearly visible and completely inaccessible.  Also available there is a virtual reality presentation where it will seem as though you are sitting in a classroom in ancient Rome, listening to Marcus Aurelius read his words.

Recorded almost as a daily journal, The Meditations describes the emperor’s way of life from when he was raised to his days as the leader of the Roman Empire.  He also offers insight into how he believes one should live their life.  In this passage he speaks on the influence of his governor, “from him too I learned endurance of labor, and to want little, and to work with my own hands, and not to meddle with other people's affairs, and not to be ready to listen to slander,” (Marcus Aurelius: <em>The Meditations</em>).  This quote I particularly enjoy.  During the creation of this work, Rome was establishing their imperialism throughout Europe.  Ethics was a topic of popularity in writing during this time and previously as well with ancient Greek philosophy.  The ideas presented by Aurelius in <em>The Meditations</em> were innovative for their time and for future generations.  These readings inspired the thoughts of enlightenment and integrity, two virtues that are held highly in any society.  They also encouraged reason over conflict and the idea that life itself should be valued most.  Years from now it will be important to remember these words from Marcus Aurelius because of their ethical influence on society.  He wrote these words for people to not just read but to live by as well, therefore it will preserved here for viewing.

As you enter the next hallway to the right you will head down to the Church of St. Marie Madeleine.  This you will find is the largest part of the museum in order to incorporate the large size of the church.  Of course this is not the actual original building itself but a highly detailed replica of the first.  So detailed in fact you will feel as though you entered the actual cathedral.  Built between 1104 and 1132 in Vezelay, France, this beautiful architectural achievement was constructed during the Romanesque period.  Stone-Vaulting was a particularly popular form of architecture in churches during this time and is displayed throughout the Church of St. Marie Madeleine.  This form of construction was also considered highly innovative for its time and continued to be until later styles were discovered in the Renasissance era.  It was discovered through Norman Masonry, which was very well known during this period (Fiero: The Humanistic Tradition).  This work is preserved for future generations to enjoy and appreciate the beauty and hard work needed to construct the church.

As you proceed down the next hallway to the right you will make your way down to the famous statue of David, created by Michelangelo.  You will find that it is his original work preserved, standing sixteen feet high.  Sculpted between 1501 and 1504, Michelangelo was at the young age of only twenty seven.  He mastered the form of contrappasto, which was very famous during this time.  The renaissance represented a period of reformation following the middle ages, concentrating highly on humanism and experimentalism, which would create vast new techniques in art.  It is important for future generations to view this work of art and appreciate the amazing technique and detail shown in the sculpture.

As you make your way down our final hallway to the right you will view the famous writing of Murasaki Shikibu, <em>The Tale of Genji</em>.  Preserved in its original form in a large case identical to <em>The Meditations</em>, you will be able to view the work in a similar virtual presentation.  Popular at the time was stories of the aristocratic societies of Japan, as shown in this writing.  Female members of this society were highly respected and even without scholarly education were able to create works like this one.  This particular work is considered to be the first actual form of a novel ever written.  Considered very innovative for this reason, it influenced the creation of literature for years to come.  We have preserved it here for our viewers to appreciate was has influenced so many amazing literal achievements through the years.

Here on this ship and especially in our museum we expect people to act and interact appropriately and intelligently.  It is important as you interact on our ship and in the museum that present yourself articulately and in a well-mannered fashion.  We find it very important that everyone appreciate these works and discuss them as much and as freely as possible.  Enjoy your visit to the now famous, El Museo de Cuatro.

Works Cited:

Aurelius, Marcus.  “<span style="text-decoration: underline;">Marcus Aurelius’ The Meditations.</span>”

Fiero, K Gloria.  “<span style="text-decoration: underline;">The Humanistic Tradition.”</span>