Rutherford's Den
Basement science museum in the cloakroom where a future Nobel physicist ran his first experiments.
Location
About this audio guide
This audio guide to Rutherford's Den in Christchurch goes underground, into a basement cloakroom at the old Canterbury College in the early eighteen-nineties. It follows a young Ernest Rutherford through the daily, hands-on work of a student experimenter, and the problem that drove him below ground. You'll meet his flamboyant chemistry mentor, Alexander Bickerton, along the way. Best heard standing in the basement room itself, looking down at the floor.
This audio guide was created using AI.
Similar places
The Arts Centre Te Matatiki Toi Ora
Historic former university campus turned arts hub, with theatres, courtyards and a Great Hall.
Canterbury Museum
Gothic Revival natural-history museum founded on moa bones, now closed for a major rebuild.
Lyttelton Timeball Station
Castle-like stone signal tower where a zinc ball drops at one o'clock above the harbour.