Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery Mystery Cache
mumbo jumbo: BMAG is set for a phased re-opening in 2024 and the displays when it does re-open will be different. Time to say farewell to this old friend.
Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(small)
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BACKGROUND
To get this cache you will have to visit and take a tour around the Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery (BMAG). The listing co-ordinates put you just outside the main entrance to BMAG in Chamberlain Square. Once inside, you will have to visit various galleries to retrieve information to enable you to work out the co-ordinates of the cache itself - which are outside the building. You might want to bring a calculator.
ABOUT BIRMINGHAM MUSEUM & ART GALLERY
BMAG first opened in 1885. It is housed in a Grade II listed city centre landmark building. There are over 40 galleries to explore that display art, applied art, social history, archaeology and ethnography.The art gallery is famous for its Pre-Raphaelite paintings, which are part of the largest public Pre-Raphaelite collection in the world. You can also see art and objects spanning seven centuries of European and World history and culture. This includes Greeks & Romans and Ancient Egypt.
BMAG is also home to the Staffordshire Hoard. Originally housed in a temporary gallery, the Hoard display can now be found in a permanent gallery.
The collections have been Designated as "outstanding" by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport and have local, regional, national and international importance.
ADMISSION & ACCESS INFORMATION
Admission :
Entrance is free but you will have plenty of opportunity to make donations to the running and upkeep of this wonderful place.
Opening Times :
Monday - Thursday : 10am - 5pm
Friday : 10.30am - 5pm
Sat : 10am - 5pm
Sunday : 12.30pm - 5pm
Open as normal on Bank Holiday Mondays
Disabled Access :
The main entrance [at the listing co-ordinates] is unsuitable for disabled access. Use the alternative entrance for the Gas Hall just round the corner at N52 28.835 W001 54.219. This entrance has a lift.
YOUR TOUR OF BMAG
Make sure you pick up a floor plan of BMAG as you enter. This will help a great deal. You can visit the galleries in any order you like. As well as hunting out the specific information you need, if you have time, do use it to take in as much of the gallery as possible. Very occasionally BMAG will close a Gallery or move exhibits. Clearly this is beyond my control but as my office is only a couple of minutes away, I can visit regularly and will keep the page as up to date as possible. Please PM me if you think something has moved or, worse, disappeared!
Second Floor
Round Room (next to the shop)
Find Birds by Albert Moore. At the base of the frame is a small plaque which gives a different name for the piece. The plaque ends with a 5 digit number made up as ---/--. Subtract the smaller number from the larger one to get D.
2 : Industrial Gallery
As you enter the Industrial Gallery from the Shop there is an unusual collection box which was commissioned by the Friends of the Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery. The piece is dated 199C. The box itself has a series of four numbers on it as follows: H, 23, 61, 20.
Staffordshire Hoard
"There are many similar mounts in the Staffordshire Hoard and it is possible that the hoard actually contains pieces from as many as F swords".
21: 20th Century Art.
Find The Warrior. This piece dates from 195J
25 : Mediaeval & Renaissance Art
Find Russo's map. The date of this map is A. Whilst you are there, investigate the articles on display in the drawers below which will be of interest to geocachers. The description of the astrolabe mentions a number. Subtract 4 from this to get E.
Third Floor - Birmingham, its people, its history
As you enter the "Birmingham, its people, its history" galleries, look out for this quote: "Birmingham has changed a lot, but for me it is still the centre of the universe". Ignoring any zero(s) in the year of this quote leaves a number which gives you G.
Then find the amazing button trade display. In front of this is a large replica button. Pull out the information tab. What number corresponds with the note "Clear and amber coloured glass beads, each mounted individually"? This number is K.
Finally, find the 1911 BSA motorcycle. The registration number is DR12B.
THE CACHE
The cache is slim and flat and contains a logbook, pencil, sharpener and couple of trackables (including a newly released geocoin of mine). It is hidden horizontally at at N52 28.XXX W001 54.YYY where:
XXX is derived as follows:
[[A / B] x C] + [D - E]
YYY is derived as follows
[F + G + H] + [J x K]
Please take care when replacing the cache not to put it too far back to stop it falling into the abyss below - thanks.
Enjoy, as they say...
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Fybggrq haqrearngu. Fbhgu fvqr bs gur fgerrg.