Museum meanderings

Saturday, 22 March 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

By Tashiya De Mel This week we take a tour of the Colombo National Museum, the largest museum in Sri Lanka and one of the two museums located in Colombo.

Housed in a magnificent white building, the museum is surrounded by uninterrupted manicured lawns and lush tree with the colonial elegance of the building being reflected through its Italian based architecture. The museum is home to an extensive collection of artefacts from as early as the pre-historic era. The first floor is organised into sections displaying artefacts from the ancient kingdoms of Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa and Kandy. Evolution and expansion of Buddhism and Hinduism within Sri Lanka is also well documented here. One of their most prized items of the museum is the crown jewels and the throne belonging to the last Kandyan King The second floor exhibits a wealth of treasures providing information about coins, weapons, jewellery, stone antiquities and an array of other fascinating items used in former times. The museum provides a good introduction to Sri Lanka’s rich and colourful history. Entrance to the Art Gallery is dependent on the attendance of its staff (who generally don’t like to show up for work, it seems). Weekdays are tricky but gallery access is guaranteed on the weekends. Museum of Natural History You need to pay an additional Rs. 250 if you want to take pictures here. This section is located in a separate building close to the green path entrance. A model of the solar system still includes Pluto as a planet. Theories about the origins of the universe are exhausting but don’t include the most important, the Big Bang theory. Stuffed animals and models from all kingdoms and classes are on display. This section is ideal for kids looking to acquire knowledge about the biology and functions of all insect and animal groups. A visit to the Colombo National Museum is ideal if you are looking to educate yourself on Sri Lanka’s rich cultural heritage. It may not be the finest museum. But is definitely a must-see for an informative look into the past (Trekurious together with DailyFT explores Sri Lanka for the curious traveller. Trekurious works with talented individuals and great brands to create amazing experiential tours, activities, and events in Sri Lanka. You can find out more at www.Trekurious.com.)

Museum of Natural History

The National Museum of Natural History which reflects the country’s natural heritage was established on 23 September 1986. This museum is situated in the same premises of Colombo National Museum facing Ananda Coomaraswamy Mawatha, Colombo 7. Even though there are a considerable number of museums in Sri Lanka, this is the only one solely representing natural heritage. The special feature is that plants and animal specimens which are endemic to Sri Lanka, rare and threatened with extinction are displayed in this museum. The museum boasts a large collection of specimens such as mammals, birds, reptiles, insects, fish, amphibians of various kinds of plants and geological rocks. The Leopard of Punani can be introduced as a special specimen displayed here. This leopard, which was caught at Punani in Batticaloa District on 16 August 1924, had killed about 13 people. The skull of a Megacerus giganteus (elk) which huge horns which is displayed at the Geological section of the museum is a specimen that creates curiosity among visitors. This skull, which belonged to an extinct species of stag, was gifted by Lord Eniskilen in 1950.

Colombo National Museum

The Colombo Museum as it was called at the beginning was established on 1 January 1877. It founder was Sir William Henry Gregory, the British Governor of Ceylon (Sri Lanka) at the time. The Royal Asiatic Society (CB) was instrumental in bringing to the notice of Gregory on his appointment as Governor in 1872 the need for a public museum with much difficulty the approval of the legislative council was obtained within a year. The Architect of the Public Works Department, J.G. Smither was able to prepare the plans for new structure on Italian architectural style. The construction was completed in 1876 and the Museum commenced it functions in the following year. The authorities of the museum took various steps to display the cultural and natural heritage of the country for this purpose. With the development of the museum to international level, it earned the status of a national museum during the period of Dr. P. E. P. Deraniyagala. He was able to open up branch museums in Jaffna, Kandy and Ratnapura and a full-fledged Department of National Museums was established in 1942 under the act No. 31. The extension of the number of branch museums has now increased to nine and in addition a school science program and a mobile museum service are also in operation. This process has further been improved by the arrangement of the galleries of the ground floor in a historical sequence and those of the upper galleries on a thematic basis.