The National Museum of Myanmar, (Burmese: အမျိုးသား ပြတိုက်), located in Dagon, Yangon, is the main museum of Burmese art, history and culture in Myanmar. Founded in 1952, the five-story museum has an extensive collection of ancient artifacts, ornaments, works of art, inscriptions and historic memorabilia, related to history, culture and civilization of Burmese people.
History
The National Museum of the Union of Burma was first opened in
June, 1952 at the Jubilee Hall Building on Shwedagon Pagoda Road,
Yangon. The museum was moved to a larger location at 24/26 Pansodan
Street in 1970, and to its present location in 1996. The new five
story National Museum has been open to public since 18 September
1996.
Galleries
The museum's collections are displayed over the following 14
galleries or halls.
Burmese Culture |
Burmese Historic Periods |
- Burmese Epigraphy and Calligraphy
- Burmese Traditional Folk Art
- Burmese Performing Arts
- Burmese Art Gallery 1
- Burmese Art Gallery 2
- Buddha Images
- Ethnic Cultures
|
- Natural History
- Prehistoric Period and Protohistoric Period
- Burmese Historic Period
- Royal Regalia
- Lion Throne
- Yadanabon Period
- Ancient Ornaments
|
Burmese
culture
- The Burmese Epigraphy and Calligraphy hall on the Ground Floor
contains exhibits on the origins and development of Burmese
script/alphabet throughout history, as well as exhibits on other
ancient and ethnic scripts.
- In the hall on culture are exhibits on Burmese rural life,
covering social, economic and cultural traditions and modes of
transport. Examples include a traditional Burmese bullock cart,
still in use in many parts of the country, an offering bowl for
monks, gilded and wrought with mosaics of semi-precious stones, and
personal ornaments and jewelry worn by the Burmese people since
ancient times.
- The Halls of Arts covers the progress of the Burmese art,
beginning with the cave paintings of from stone age to the Bagan,
Innwa, Taungoo, Konbaung and Yadanabon periods to 20th century
contemporary art. The works of famous artists are on display.
- In the Hall of Performing Arts are many musical instruments and
an ornate saingwaing (traditional Burmese orchestra) as well
as marionettes used in classical dramas and operas.
- The Hall of Ethnic Culture on Fourth floor shows national
dresses and traditional artifacts of various ethnic groups of
Myanmar.
- Fourth floor of the museum consists of halls for the Buddha
Images, dating back to the Pyu Period and up to the present
day.
Historic
periods
- In the exhibit hall on Natural History are many fossils dating
back millions of years, including a 40 million year old an
anthropoid primate, found in the
Pondaung region in Upper Myanmar.
- The hall of Pre-historic Times houses a replica of the Padalin
Cave, complete with its over 10,000 year old stone age drawings,
stone weapons of the neolithic period, and bronze weapons of a
later age. The hall also has exhibits on Pyu period
(1st-to-9th century) artifacts such as clay pots, urns, votive
tablets and necklaces as well as those found in archaeological
excavations at the ancient Pyu city of Sriksetra.
- In the hall of Burmese History are exhibits on the pagodas,
temples, monasteries and ordination halls of the Bagan Period and
the marvelous murals of the Pinya, Innwa, Taungoo, and Konbaung
periods. Rare ancient votive tablets with moldings from scenes of
the jataka stories are also on display.
- The Royal Regalia hall houses displays of beautifully
ornamented objects used in royal ceremonies of ancient kings from
different periods.
- The Throne Room houses miniature models of the eight kinds of
thrones of ancient Burmese kings and the magnificent Royal Lion
Throne of the last Burmese monarch King Thibaw in all its original
majesty, used in Hluttaw Hall (or Hall of Council of
Ministers).
- The Yadanabon Period Exhibit hall has displays on clothing
fashions, furniture and other household articles of the time such
as a palanquin used by King Thibaw's Chief Abbot.