10/03/2008 08:37:00
The Royal Museum in Edinburgh has been bequeathed the largest single donation in its 147-year history: a £2 million legacy left by an elderly woman who died in late 2006.
Adele Stewart, a 79-year-old Edinburgh-native, was well-known as one of the Royal Museum's most regular visitors, and became a patron in 2006. According to the BBC, she died later that year but the details of her will have only just been made publicly known.
In her honour, the museum's directors have announced that they are to rename the institution's World Cultures galleries after Ms Stewart.
Scotland on Sunday quotes Sandy Richardson, head of development at the Royal Museum, as saying:
"We are considering how best to use the bequest in a way that Adele would have appreciated. We do get legacies on a regular basis but usually in the range of around £5,000 to £50,000. A bequest on this scale is highly unusual."
The director National Museums of Scotland, Dr Gordon Rintoul, stated: "Adele Stewart was a great supporter of our work and aspirations, and we are honoured and touched that she has remembered us in this way.
"She was a proud Scot who had travelled the world, took a deep interest in cultural and community activities and was deeply connected to Edinburgh and its institutions."
The Royal Museum is one of Edinburgh's most popular attractions. It is currently undergoing a radical renovation plan, estimated to cost £46.4 million, of which the World Cultures galleries are set to be a central feature.
The revamp is expected to be complete by 2011.