The Mapparium

photo.JPG, a photo by Shellenski on Flickr.

The Mapparium is a fabulous stained glass sphere with panels of glass painted to make up the continents and countries of Earth. There is a foot bridge that you walk across going through the globe. They play a commentary about the Earth whilst each country or continent lights up in time to the story. Another amazing thing that the designer found out once it was completed is that is has amazing acoustics and that you can hear the smallest whisper from the other side of the bridge. This was different to the dome at St Paul's Cathedral in London and different from the Whispering Wall in South Australia's Barossa Valley.... when people whispered it sounded and felt like those whispers were in your own head. I'm guessing this is what it would sound like if you could hear dead people or if you were being advised to kill someone by God..... although all these voices were saying was "Where's Ohio?, I can't see Ohio!"