Early October last year saw Sweden erupting in joy as the Nobel Prize for Literature was conferred on a Swedish poet. After nearly three decades, the coveted gold medallion had found its way back to the homeland of the man who started it all.
Alfred Nobel (1833-1896) was a cosmopolitan Swede and an innovative inventor, who had lived in St Petersburg, Stockholm and Paris. As the story goes, he was appalled by the destructive utilisation of his invention, dynamite. He wished instead that his enduring legacy be a celebration of the innovation and genius of humankind. In his will, Nobel wrote that physics, chemistry, physiology/medicine, literature and peace would each year receive a part of the revenues of his fortune.
This original will, among other things, can be found at the Nobel Museum in Stockholm.
To reach Nobelmuseet (as it is called in Swedish) you need to find your way through the Old Town of Gamla Stan, a delightful maze of cobbled paths lined with quaint shops selling Swedish knick-knacks and souvenirs (Potter fans, think Diagon Alley).
From the moment you pass through the glass doors frosted with the Nobel medallion, you realise the truth of the museum's stated aim to “spread knowledge as well as to create interest and discussion around the natural sciences and culture through creative learning and exhibition techniques, modern technology and elegant design.” The reception area has a huge image of the Nobel medallion on the floor, radiating in all directions.
Further ahead, a multimedia timeline maps ten decades of development through the Nobel Prizes, against the backdrop of history. Touchscreens take you through the winners in each category in each year of the decade. On the floor, screens project historic visuals from those times.
The winners were truly products of their times: the scope and focus of achievements and discoveries being driven by the spirit of the age. The 2000's have been titled the ‘Decade of Globalisation and Terrorism': one wonders what the current decade will be remembered for.
The spirit of Nobel literally pervades from top to bottom — a unique cableway in the ceiling presents each Laureate in a random order through a portrait and Prize citation. We spotted Rabindranath Tagore, C.V. Raman and Amartya Sen, our national Nobel Laureates.
Fact file
Location: Stortorget, Gamla Stan, Stockholm
www.nobelmuseum.se
Life and tools of Laureates
One of the most exciting areas of the Museum features articles used by Nobel Laureates in their prize-winning efforts. These include Wilhelm Conrad Rontgen's X-ray machine (Physics, 1901), Joseph Brodsky's typewriter (Literature, 1987), Alexander Fleming's penicillin samples (Medicine, 1945), first insulin needles used by Frederick G. Banting and John Macleod (Medicine,1921) and the famous Nansen passports introduced for WWI refugees by Fridtjof Nansen(Peace, 1938). Also occupying pride of place: Amartya Sen's bicycle, which he used to travel around in Calcutta to get data, and Tagore's slate.
Besides the permanent installations, there was also a special exhibition on the life, times and discoveries of Madame Marie Curie. Mme Curie's story has features common to all Nobel Laureates — hard work, persistence and a dash of genius.
The exhibition area recreates the scientific lab of the Curies, including some real instruments used by them. Also exhibited is radium in its ore form, an element central to their work on radioactivity. Radium was apparently first thought of as a beauty-enhancing element, until its hazardous nature was confirmed. Cosmetics with radium and advertisements promoting the same are also exhibited here. Being a woman in the male-dominated area of scientific research did not make things easy. There is a telling exhibit of Mme Curie at work in her lab, with her young daughter Irène (who later won the Nobel herself), tugging at her skirts demanding attention. Also featured are anecdotes on how she almost didn't receive her first Nobel — because it was unheard of for women to win such honours; Pierre Curie refused to accept the Nobel unless his wife was awarded the same — and how she was almost denied her second one — because the widowed Mme Curie was reportedly having an affair with a younger, married assistant, something the Swedish academy found unpalatable. What shines through nevertheless is the indomitable spirit of genius and hard work, triumphing over the hurdles placed by social and cultural limitations.
The nature of genius
What does it take to win the coveted Nobel medallion? You can watch footage on the process of choosing a Laureate, carried out by the Swedish Academy. Or else, head to the two film rooms that flank the central area. One features eight-minute long films on the Laureates. Notable biographies included that of a Japanese Physics laureate, whose grandfather was a Samurai. You can watch footage of Nobel Peace Laureate, the 14th Dalai Lama, being welcomed into India by then-President of India S. Radhakrishnan and Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. A proud moment, reflecting India's inclusiveness. The second room screens films about milieus that foster Nobel winners. Along with Paris, Cambridge and a few others, is Shantiniketan. It was a thought-provoking film that juxtaposed Tagore's visions and ideals, with shots of contemporary Shantiniketan. There are some tongue-in-cheek moments: a teacher waxes eloquent on how Tagore would doodle or scribble continuously on any piece of paper available; the next shot features placid cows chewing their way through swathes of paper.
