Out with the old and in with the old. That's the story at the newly-refurbished Bermuda Historical Society (BHS) museum in the National Library Building on Queen Street.

For years the rooms adjoining the former main entrance to the Library building have been filled with an eclectic mixture of paintings, china, furniture and silver, but like many homes there was more collection than space to display it well, so the trustees decided to close the facility temporarily in December and revamp it from top to bottom.

What has emerged is a fresher, more attractive space, still with its lovely, old-world ambiance, but free of yesterday's clutter and conforming to well-known designer Will Collieson's vision of re-designing the interior without making it contemporary.

Walls with a whisper of cream and contrasting white woodwork now form the perfect backdrop against which to set the beautiful antique furniture, portraits, glass-fronted display cabinets and more.

Bare floors, refinished to a soft patina, contribute significantly to the sense of "old", and allow appreciation of the wood itself.

From the gracious entrance room, to the small gallery at the top of the impressive cedar staircase, to the ground level side rooms with their Bermuda cedar colonial windows, everything is tastefully displayed to pique the visitors' interest and seamlessly draw them in.

The china and glassware sparkles, the Bermuda silver cutlery gleams, and the furniture is spotless, thanks to the hard work of volunteer Arthur Tatem who spent any hours returning everything to pristine condition.

BHS committee member Arthur D. DeSilva was in overall charge of co-ordinating the physical and structural refurbishments, while Jackie Aubrey was responsible for the helpful signage throughout.

With so many artifacts in its collection, the Bermuda Historical Society's dilemma was what to display and what to store, so the decision was made to utilise the talents of BHS secretary and historian John Cox. He sorted the collection in terms of value, storing items which did not meet his criteria for the initial exhibition, but which can be used for future, possibly themed, displays.

With what remained, Mr. Collieson's task was to set out them out attractively in the various rooms.

"As in many jobs I do in this field, taking away things is just as important as adding things. There were too many eclectic pieces in a relatively small space, and to some degree you could not see the wood for the trees. From a curatorial point of view, there has to be a reason why things are shown," Mr. Collieson says.

"Also, in talking to people I realised that many of them were familiar with the Museum so I wanted to make it more visible and part of Hamilton as a place to visit and a thing to do.

"The first priority of the designer was to remove all of the carpeting and replace the domestic look of the place with a gallery feel a move which proved particularly fortuitous, for it revealed that not only were the handrails and balusters of the staircase Bermuda cedar, but also the steps and risers themselves. Beautifully refurbished, it is now the focal point of the entrance hall leading to the Colin Benbow Gallery on the abridged second level.

Unfortunately there are no records to indicate who built what Mr. Collieson described as "a magnificent piece of work", but he surmises that it was part of the original Postmaster Perot's home.

Entering the Museum one first comes to the entrance hall, whose walls are lined with portraits, including those of Mr. and Mrs. Perot, Sir George and Lady Somers, Hamilton merchant William Morris, and Mrs. William Hall.

Other works on loan from the Masterworks Museum of Bermuda Art include paintings by William Fisher, James Toogood, and Al Seymour's study of marathon runner 'Sir' Stanley Burgess.

Up and around the cedar staircase are the Andrew Bermingham and Anna Maria Outerbridge Collections of work by Boer War prisoners, as well as craftwork by Napoleonic, American and German prisoners of war; artefacts relating to the Bermuda Police Service, including the handcuffs worn by murderer Harry Sousa; swords and rifles; and tributes to Fred Dolan, the only black Bermudian to fight in the Boer War, and Eddie Brennan, who fought in the Royal Air Force and the US Air Force, and was killed in action in 1945.

Three spades recall the planting of commemorative trees, and the turning of the first sod at the USNaval Base in Southampton.

At ground level, the innermost room is set up to resemble a typical room of its period, with antique dining table and assorted chairs, glass-fronted china cabinets containing English and Chinese export china, including rare Nankin bowls and a Worcester two-handled curdle, a Bermuda cedar baby's cradle, child's high chair, spinning wheel and more.

The adjoining room, with its prominent fire place at one end, features an eclectic mixture of things, among them models of the Sea Venture, Patience and Deliverance; Sir George Somers' lodestone and intricately carved caronne (sea) chest; collections of Bermuda silverware and coins, including an original hog penny; miniature portraits, including one of Henry Hamilton, after whom the City is named; US Civil War artefacts; a Union flag flown by General George Washington in the US Revolutionary war; a Victorian electric shock machine; a collection of premature souvenirs created in anticipation of the coronation of Edward VII; and a Bermuda cedar Masonic ballot box; and a cedar cabinet made by the late W.E.R. Joell.

To the right of the entrance is a room which, thanks to a partnership between the BHS, the Corporation of Hamilton (de facto landlords) and the Bermuda National Library, is to become the Bermuda Historical and Cultural Studies Room. This will house a Bermuda rare books display, reference and circulation material, and form a link between the two facilities.

Curator H.J. (Chummy) Zuill is delighted with the number of visitors who say how impressed they are with the refurbishment.

"Will Collieson deserves a great deal of credit for what he has done," he says.

Summing up the new-look Museum, which moved from its former home to the present site in 1957, BHS president Andrew Bermingham said, "We decided to modernise the Museum and make it more attractive to all Bermudians and visitors, and this is also our contribution to the upcoming 400th anniversary celebrations in 2009."