OTTAWA – The Canadian War Museum will give visitors a rare look at uniforms, equipment and artworks in its collection vaults May 9 as it marks its 10th anniversary on Ottawa’s LeBreton Flats.

The holdings are extensive, with the museum’s art collection alone comprising some 13,000 pieces.

Admission will be free and special programming planned for the day includes outdoor demonstrations, on the North Plaza, of some of the museum’s operational tanks and armoured cars.

As well, veterans of conflicts ranging from the Second World War to the present will be available to share their experiences.

The museum, which traces its origins to an 1880 collection of militia artifacts, says it has received nearly five million visits since it opened its strikingly designed building – the work of a team led by architect Raymond Moriyama – in May 2005 beside the Ottawa River.