The Museum of Promises

The Museum of promises has over 100,000 promises from all around the world, from the present day stretching back to ancient times.

The oldest promise in the museum is an Egyptian tablet, hieroglyphics dating back 6,000 years, containing a promise to a long-forgotten god that every year a sacrifice will be made at time of harvest.

There are promises from British history as well, including a collection of Queen Victoria’s promise to the royal servants, ranging from a promise of a good reference to a kitchen maid who left to be married, to a gold watch promised to a porter who served the family for 50 years and even an OBE to the loyal royal butler, the first honour ever to be bestowed on a lowly servant.

There are broken promises too. The promise made to the nation at the start of the first World War that it would all be over by Christmas. The promise that it would be the war to end all wars. The promises made by thousands of troops to their loved ones that they’d make it back safely.

One of the features in the museum is a short film, showing how political promises have changed over the years. The early footage shows politicians promising jobs, increased pensions and health care for all. Footage from the 70s are full of promises of a 3 day working week and increased leisure time. More recent footages shows politicians promising to look at the possibility of cutting taxes, or to stop wasteful spending on unspecified things, or to be the greenest government ever – promises that sound empty even before they’re spoken.

The sound display is the strangest. 1,000 audio promises spliced together into a mind-fuck of noise, promises ranging from recording of people from all walks of life, interspliced with the occasional footage from politicians, celebrities or historical figures.

Listen to the noise: “I promise I’ll get it cut,” “I promise I won’t see him again,” “I’ll buy you one tomorrow, I promise”; “watch my lips – no new taxes”; “I don’t want to go back in the box, please don’t pub me back in the box – I promise I won’t put you back in the box”. Twenty minutes of intense promising then total silence. An eerie experience.

Just before you leave every visitor is asked to fill out a postcard with one of their own promises. There are thousands pinned up on the board, the man in fornt of me wrote that he promised to return his neighbour’s lawnmower. I filled out my own card.

The museum of promises. I promised to take you there before you died. I’m sorry I left it too late.