The National Museum of Singapore is Singapore’s oldest museum, thus it is culturally and historically significant to Singapore’s History. It was opened on 12 October 1887 and was known formerly as the Raffles Library and Museum. It was designed by Henry McCallum and Major J.F.A. McNair and was built by two contractors. It is such a beauty that it is no wonder that one of the contractors building went crazy.
This building had undergone many transitions through the years. The library and museum were separated in 1960 and 9 years later it was called the National Museum. Then in 1992, it became a national monument. One year later, it was then known as the Singapore History Museum, which presented Singapore’s History. In 2003, it closed for three years for a major redevelopment. It was then reopened as the National Museum of Singapore on the 7th of December 2006. Due to the redevelopment of the museum, it now contains both the old and a new structure which is made out of mainly glass and steel structure.
So off we went to check it out, and being students, we had free entry!
There were many galleries, namely photography, film and wayang, fashion, history and of course, the food gallery!
The photography gallery was mainly about the history of families in Singapore through the years, displayed through photographs and videos. For example, there were photographs and videos of olden day vocations such as prostitution, amah (a present day domestic servant) and about Chinese families.
The film and wayang gallery had three big screens screening olden day opera that greatly surprised us. Devices that entertained people in the olden days were also on display. None of us have actually seen an opera before, so it was an eyeopener.
We only spent a brief time in the fashion gallery, as the men did not want to view it. A pity we did not take any clear photographs, but the clothing, especially the cheongsams, were exquisite.
As most of us had not eaten our lunch yet, the food gallery made our stomachs rumble. It portrayed Singapore’s street food of the mid 20th century. There were videos to watch, spices to smell and sounds of the street hawker to be heard. There was also abundant information, sound of the famous Tok Tok Mee and recipes to try out. It was very interactive and we were very interested.
Last of all was the history gallery. There was a multimedia handheld device that acted as a tour guide through audio and visual means, which we thought was an excellent way to showcase Singapore’s history to its visitors. There were lots to be seen. We even spotted a few displays used in the lecture! It helped us understand Singapore's history better especially coupled with the lectures we have been to so far.
Tired and hungry, but full of knowledge, we left.
