National Museum of Singapore

Little background of National Museum of Singapore

The national Museum of Singapore is the nation's oldest museum. The Museum is previously known as Singapore Library-Museum in 1823, Raffles Library and Museum in 1963. In 1960, the museum separated from the library. Following independence in 1965, it was renamed National Museum to reflect its role of collecting national items.

It contain 10 National Treasures which are The Singapore Stone, Gold Ornaments from the Forbidden Hill, Daguerreotype of Singapore by Alphonse-Eugene-Jules Itier, Will of Munshi Abdullah, Portrait of Sir Frank Athelstane Swettenham, Singapore from the Rocky Point, The Mace of the city of Singapore, The Xin Sai Le Puppet Stage, Portrait of Sir Shenton Thomas and The William Farquhar Collection of Natural History Drawings. It also consist of galleries with creative and interesting ways of presenting the history and culture of Singapore to provide a pleasant museum experience to visitors. The Museum also hosts innovative festivals and events all year round such as the Night Festival, amazing performances and film screenings. The Museum is also supported by a wide range of facilities and services including F&B, retail and a Resource Centre.

Retail shop - Museum Label

F&B - Flutes

When I enter the museum, I went to collect my admission sticker. The system at National Museum of Singapore is similar to SAM. Where it is free for Singaporeans/PRs but not foreign visitors where they would need to pay a fee. At the counter, there are also several brochures about the current exhibitions as well as up coming exhibitions. While over at the other corner, there is a bunch of brochures about other attractions in Singapore such as Sentosa, Night Safari etc. I collected a few of the Sentosa brochures as I felt that it would be of help for my other modules.

The first gallery that I went to is the Leading Ladies, Woman makes a difference. This gallery is to remember the work of the community of woman made in the past. One of them is Mrs May Wong. She is the CWA's longest serving presidents. I do not really know the detail or history behind CWA but its a gallery that is worth to see as it is trying to convey a message that woman can be a leader and lead too.

I find that the dresses of the past are very pretty as the design on each dress is very detailed.

Mrs May Wong

The next gallery is a gallery that shows the recent and past photos of certain places in Singapore. There are a few places that I did not see before as I did not visit them personally. However, through this gallery I actually gained knowledge about places. I find it very meaningful as some of the places are already demolished. For example, the walkway at Singapore General Hospital. Hence the photos allow us to still "revisit" the places and see how it looks like.

Public Housing Flats

Monks Hill Secondary School

Walkway at Singapore General Hospital

Golden Mile Complex

The next gallery at level 2 is in memoriam for Mr Lee Kuan Yew, who was the founding father of the modern Singapore. I felt that every Singaporean should have been here for at least once. This gallery tells us about his legacy and the things he do for Singapore. It is a memorial to Mr Lee Kuan Yew contributions to Singapore. Before you enter, there would be a shelf that is full of Mr Lee Kuan Yew booklet with different languages. Hence, I took two different kind of booklet home to read up about his legacy. 

Next up is the OleOle temasek! It talks about the 50 years of Singapore Malay Pop Music. From traditional opera to pop and rock influences, Malay music has evolved rapidly over the ages. In this gallery, it shows us how Malay weddings and talent shows were crucial platforms that fostered the hopes and dreams of young Malay musicians and also how the trends of different style come and go. What I love about this gallery is the fact that there are real instruments being exhibited as well as a real motorcycle which is quite old fashioned. There is also a corner where visitors can put on headphones to listen to music.

Overall, National Museum of Singapore is a place to learn about the history of Singapore and it teaches many values at the same time. Do not worry about children making lots of noise as there is a play room at level 2 of the museum where you can leave your child there while you explore the museum. I felt that the Museum is wheelchair friendly due to lifts and I spotted a few wheelchair there as well. Therefore, do not hesitate to visit as it is definitely worthwhile. I would definitely return to visit again because there is some part of museum that I missed due to construction currently. :)