Department of Heritage announced Saturday, that it plans to further develop the National Museum, which was first opened for public display on November 19, 1952. It was located at the “us gekolhu” in the Sultan Park. A new and modern museum was built in 2010, with grant aid from the Chinese Government.
Director at the agency Adam Naseer said that “we are currently making preparations to display new items at the museum. Some of the new items include historical artefacts and some gifts received by the President.”
The museum has a valuable collection of objects of the past that depict the history and rich cultural heritage of the country. They include a number of items and objects belonging to previous rulers, including ornaments and costumes of kings and queens.
The museum also displays stone items of the pre-Islamic period, paper and cloth manuscripts, arms and armor, photographs of important personalities, anthropological objects and other such items that exhibit the past Maldivian way of life.
It is one of the major tourist attractions in the country, and the Heritage Department said the number of locals visiting the museum has been rising, especially during the school holidays.