Have you ever walked through a museum and noticed a sculpture that you just wanted to reach out and touch? Of course you didn’t risk it because the first rule of museums is that you can look, but you don’t touch. But your desire to reach for certain pieces may have been exactly the reaction that the sculptor intended for you to have.

For example, during the 1500s, artisans started creating various new devices specifically for holding in the hand. The large and heavy hourglasses commonly used at that time became pocket watches, which easily fit in the palm. Similarly, small sculptures, sized to be held and touched, also became popular.

According to experts at The Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, sculptors may have designed these works to appeal to our sense of touch by incorporating pleasing shapes and textures specifically sized just for our hands.

But when sculptures are meant to be touched and held, how does a modern museum display these pieces while still protecting them?

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