Museum & Planetarium

The Museum and Planetarium were built in 1967-68, as a part of Canada’s Centennial celebrations. The buildings were designed by Gerald Hamilton. The museum was intended to replace the City Museum located at the Carnegie Library downtown. A gift by prominent lumber businessman H.R. MacMillan allowed Hamilton to incorporate a planetarium into the design.

The buildings are constructed from pre-cast concrete panel cladding. The distinctive dome atop the Museum, resembles basket hats of Northwest Coast First Nations peoples. The large-scale stainless steel crab sculture was designed by George Norris.

The Museum and Planetarium are located in Vanier Park. The area was originally the location of a First Nations village, which later became Reserve land. During the Second World War, the property was used as an Air Force equipment depot.

Source

Canada's Historic Places, Museum of Vancouver website

More information

http://www.historicplaces.ca/en/rep-reg/place-lieu.aspx?id=8920&pid=0