The fire that hit the National Museum of Indonesia (MNI) on Saturday (16/09) evening has been controlled. Until now, the special team formed by the MNI is still working hard to recover from this unfortunate incident. Luckily there were no casualties and data collection on affected collections is still ongoing.
This museum, which was founded during the Dutch government in Batavia, has received a lot of attention, considering the large number of historical objects in it. To find out more about MNI or the Elephant Museum, let’s look at the interesting facts!
1. History and origins of the so-called Elephant Museum
History and Origins of the so-called Elephant Museum/Photo: museumnasional.or.id
According to the official website, the National Museum of Indonesia was founded as an institution created by the Dutch government because it was inspired by advances in science in Europe in 1778.
This organization was created independently for the general public, its founder, JCM Radermacher, donated his house on Jalan Kalibesar and also some of his book collections and objects. When this place was first built, it was called Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen (BG).
The BG collection increased over time, until the Dutch government built a new building and opened it to the public in 1868 until now. In 1871, because King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) from Thailand visited the museum and presented him with a bronze elephant statue in the front yard of the museum, this museum was also known as the Elephant Museum by the public, especially Newsdelivers.com residents.
2. National Museum Treasures
Muteran Treasures/Photo: museumnasional.or.id
The National Museum of Indonesia has stored 190,000 objects of great historical value and consists of 7 types of collections, namely Prehistoric collections, Archeology from the Hindu-Buddhist period, Numismatics and Heraldry, Ceramics, Ethnography, Geography and History.
Until now, the collections have continued to grow, most recently the return of four Singasari statues from the Netherlands to Indonesia, namely Ganesha, Mahakala, Durga Mahisasuramardini, and Nandiswara last August.
3. Building at the National Museum of Indonesia
Building at the National Museum of Indonesia/Photo: detik.com/Weka Kanaka
Standing on 265,500 square meters of land, MNI is also said to be the largest museum in Indonesia and even Southeast Asia. There are 2 buildings in this museum, namely Building A which is used as an exhibition space and immersion vehicle.
Then Building B, also known as the Arca Building, is used for exhibitions, offices, laboratories, conference rooms, commercial areas, libraries and temporary exhibition spaces. Building B itself was inaugurated by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on June 20 2007.
4. Many events are held
Immersifa Event/ Photo: instagram.com/museumnasionalindonesia
Apart from its many functions, the Elephant Museum also often holds cultural, exhibition and literacy events, which include immersive facilities. Almost every activity is exciting and free to attend, such as Shared Storytelling, Weekend Gamelan which is a regular museum agenda to amazing immersive performances.
5. Visited by the Japanese Emperor
Visit of the Emperor of Japan/Photo: instagram.com/museumnasionalindonesia
The National Museum of Indonesia is visited by many important figures from abroad. In June 2023, Japanese Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako visited and were amazed at the collections. Previously, the Chairman of the Shanghai Art Collection Museum (SACM) and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China also visited MNI.
Beauties, those are 5 interesting facts about the National Museum of Indonesia which holds a treasure trove of historical objects. Hopefully he recovers quickly and we can visit the museum again.
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(dmh/dmh)