Since its commemoration on September 11th, 2011, the tenth anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks, millions of visitors worldwide have come to the 9/11 Memorial site at Ground Zero, and in two months (on May 21st) the long-awaited National 9/11 Museum will open underneath it.
The Museum will be located seven stories underground "at the bedrock foundations of the World Trade Center," below Memorial Park, according to the Museum's site. To descend, visitors will enter a pavilion where two steel tridents from the North Building's remnants mark the way.
The main space plans to host two exhibits at the time of opening in late May. "In Memoriam" will pay tribute to the first responders, EMTs, firefighters, and citizens who passed, and the second will be a historical exhibition, taking visitors through a timeline of events leading up to September 11th, 2001. Both of these stories will be told through a vast collection of artifacts, photographs, audio/video footage, and first-person testimonials.
Additionally, it was reported this weekend that over 8,000 unidentified remains would be moved into the museum. According to the Post, "The 'remains repository' will be hidden from view behind a wall engraved with a quote by Virgil: 'No day shall erase you from the memory of time.'" There will also be "an ME’s office and a family visiting room."
To honor the Museum's opening, the week of May 15th will be deemed a "Dedication Period," in which the families of victims will only be allowed in the Museum. During that time, the Museum will be open 24 hours a day, "allowing members of this community to visit when it is best for them," a press release stated this morning.
"We are honored that the first people to experience this Museum will be the men and women who came to our aid and protected us on 9/11, the families of the innocent victims killed that day, and the survivors who lived to tell the tale of an unimaginable horror so that we may learn from the past. The Museum is built upon their incredible stories," 9/11 Memorial Chair and former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg added.
As of now, the ticket price for the Museum has been set at a mandatory $24, in comparison to the Memorial which is free of charge (the consequence: on a busy day, you usually have to wait a few hours before entering). There is a brief three-hour period when admission is free: The museum says, "Tickets to the Museum for visits when it opens to the general public are available at 911memorial.org, beginning March 26. There are various discounts and admission is free Tuesdays from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. 9/11 family members do not have to pay an admission to visit the Museum. 9/11 rescue and recovery workers who are registered with the Memorial also visit for free. "
