In the form in which they were first issued, in 1759, these statutes directed that the Museum should ‘be kept open every day in the week, except Saturday and Sunday.’ [Sidenote: 1759–1803.] For the greater part of the year the public hours were from nine o’clock in the morning until three o’clock in the afternoon. On certain days, in the summer months, the open hours were from four o’clock in the afternoon until eight—so as to meet the requirements of persons actively engaged in business during the early part of the day. But the publicity was hampered by a system of admission-tickets which had to be applied for on a day precedent to that of every intended visit. The application had first to be made, then registered; a second application had to follow, in order to receive the ticket; and the ticket could rarely be used at the time of receiving it. [Sidenote: MS. ADDIT., 6179, ff. 36, seqq.] So that, in practice, each visit to the Museum had commonly to be preceded by two visits to the ‘Porter’s Lodge.’ The visitors were admitted in parties, at the prescribed hours, and were conducted through the Museum by its officers according to a routine which, practically and usually, allowed to each group of visitors only one hour for the inspection of the whole. Special arrangements, however, were made for those who resorted to the Museum for purposes of study. [Sidenote: _Statutes and Regulations_, part ii, § 3.] To such, say the statutes, ‘a particular room is allotted, in which they may read or write without interruption during the time the Museum is kept open.’ [Sidenote: MS. ADDIT., 6179, as above.] The aggregate number of persons admitted as visitors—exclusive of students—was, for some years, restricted to sixty persons, as a maximum, in any one day. In order to give the reader a definite and clear idea of what was seen, in 1759, by the earliest visitors to the British Museum, in its rudimentary state, some sort of ground plan is essential, but the merest outline will suffice for the purpose. There were at Montagu House two floors or stories of state apartments. The upper floor was that which was first shown, after the formation of the Museum. The visitor, having ascended the superb staircase painted by LA FOSSE, passed through a vestibule and grand saloon (_A_ _B_) furnished with various antiquities, into the ‘Cottonian Library’ (_C_), and thence into the ‘Harleian Library,’ which occupied three rooms (_D_, _E_, and _F_). He then entered the ‘Medal Room’—containing the coins and medals of the SLOANE and COTTON collections (_G_); the ‘SLOANE Manuscript Room’ (_H_); and the room containing the chief part of the antiquities (_I_)— [Illustration: _Rough Diagram, showing Principal Floor of the original British Museum of 1759._ ]