Michael C. Carlos Museum — Attraction in Decatur

Will not be back. From personal experiences working at museums and visiting museums, the staff are the worst part. For those who have an invisible disability and need ADA, just FORGET about bringing medicine because I went out of my way to take my timed meds in an area where I would not be disturbing anyone or the near the artifacts and was almost KICKED OUT for a bottle of WATER! I had told them anyway that I had to take this medicine now (epilepsy) and security tailed me the entire way out even though I had already put my bottle of water away and already taken my meds. Felt like a criminal for trying to make sure I was safe 🙄

And as someone who’s worked in museums before, the exhibits are really hit or miss. Some are very enlightening and amazing to look at. Others are way too text heavy for the average person. I would normally look over this if there are any supplemental labels or interactive displays but there are none. Some pieces were horribly labeled and numbered that it was a pain to try and decipher which piece went to what short identifying title. There were children running around some of the displays and obviously not interested in being there. The African exhibit had no information (which is explained as you come into it) but they have (touch?) screen displays that LOOK like they’re supposed to tell you more about the piece or the culture but it’s literally just a blank screen with names of the pieces. No extra information or any type of guide for their importance. The exhibit serves more like someone’s private wall art than what should be in a museum. And that is the ONLY exhibit that is like this, the other have TOO much text for someone the reasonably read. Bags were never checked, student ID was never checked (that’s the only saving grace, college students get in free). Someone had food though because I smelled chicken wings in the American...

My husband and I attend college and for a requirement for one of our classes we had to attend this museum and answer a stack of questions and take photos. We have two small children who we brought with us, I do understand it’s not an ideal place for children, but when you don’t live around family and friends you do what you need to do, especially in our case trying to get good grades in college as well as working full time. A woman there made multiple rude gestures and rude comments towards my children, as if we brought them there for fun. I suppose the binders and writing things down wasn’t a hint for her as to why we were there. We ran into her over a few times and every time she made us extremely uncomfortable with her poor attitude. Then after dealing with her all day, a security guard was very uneasy and made comments about our backpack, which was a diaper bag, hence with my one and two year old it is needed any time we leave the house. She said we could not have it, so are we supposed to walk a mile back to the parking garage every time we have to change his diaper? I understand a museme is not the place for children, but given my families circumstances and just trying to complete a project for school, the attitude of the security guard along with the people at the museum was far beyond ridiculous and down right disrespectful. I will not be returning to this museum and I can guarantee you the woman who was so rude to my ONE YEAR OLD has never had children or grandchildren. Thank you for...

For a museum this size, its collections of Antiquities and of Pre-Columbian Americas (except North America) are really impressive. Better still, many objects come with descriptive text so detailed that reads like an excerpt from academic papers (maybe not a good thing? you be the judge). Exhibits are generally well-presented, but more exhibition spaces are definitely in need. The museum interior, while certainly not claustrophobia-inducing, does feel crammed at places (both in galleries and in vitrines). And a lack of seating also comes as a consequence. In addition, a more informative floor plan explaining what each gallery does (e.g. Egypt upper left - Old Kingdom; upper right - Middle Kingdom) may help visitors navigate the exhibits better (this can also be placed at the entrance to each major exhibition). All in all, if you like museums and are in the area, give this place a try and you shouldn't be disappointed. For seeing objects with such quality, admission fee is very reasonable (not to mention their numerous forms of discounts, although you may argue that many university art museums are free). Oh, and please allow me to add one personal note to conclude this review: given how good the aforementioned exhibitions are, their Asian and African galleries leave a lot to be desired. Do I expect too much for such a smaller-sized museum? Perhaps they will get more square footage one day, who knows, and their collections will surely...