National Taiwan Museum

The National Taiwan Museum (NTM; Chinese: 國立臺灣博物館; pinyin: Guólì Táiwān Bówùguǎn), established in 1908, is the oldest museum in Taiwan. It was founded by the colonial government during Taiwan's period of Japanese rule. The museum is located in Zhongzheng District, Taipei.

National Taiwan Museum
國立臺灣博物館
Established24 October 1908 (original building)
1915 (current building)
LocationZhongzheng, Taipei, Taiwan
Coordinates25.04275369637105°N 121.51503772096355°E / 25.04275369637105; 121.51503772096355
TypeNational museum
DirectorHung Shih-yu (洪世佑)
CuratorChen Chiming (陳濟民)
Websitentm.gov.tw

History

Established in 1908, the museum is the oldest in Taiwan. The colonial government of Japan set up the Taiwan Governor Museum (臺灣總督府民政部殖產局附屬博物館), which officially opened on 24 October 1908, to commemorate the inauguration of the North-South Railway. The museum had a collection of over 10,000 items in its initial stages. In 1915, the new building of the museum in Taihoku New Park was inaugurated and became one of the major public buildings during Japanese rule.[1]

In 1935 it was used to house the First Cultural Pavilion at The Taiwan Exposition: In Commemoration of the First Forty Years of Colonial Rule.[2]

National Taiwan Museum circa 1957–1959

After the handover of Taiwan from Japan to the Republic of China, the Department of Education of the Taiwan Provincial Government took over the administration of the museum in 1949 and renamed it Taiwan Provincial Museum until 1999.[3] The museum underwent two major renovations in 1961 and 1994 respectively. Since 1999, the museum has been administered by the Central Government and renamed "National Taiwan Museum." Throughout the years of war and political transition and after twice being renamed, it stands as the only museum established during the colonial years, which is still in operation on its original site.

In 1998, the Ministry of the Interior declared the museum a "National Heritage." On 21 November 2017, the museum reopened after two months of renovation works.[4]

Capital Museums System
Land Bank Exhibition Hall
Nanmen Park
Railway Department Park

The Council for Cultural Affairs started a project in 2005 to combine the National Taiwan Museum with nearby historical sites into the "Capital Museums System".

The National Taiwan Museum System currently consists of 4 museums:

  • National Taiwan Museum
  • Land Bank Exhibition Hall: Formerly the head office of the Land Bank of Taiwan, in the old Kangyo Bank building (勸業銀行舊廈). Designated as a natural history museum.
  • Nanmen Park: The camphor factory of the Monopoly Bureau (專賣局舊樟腦工廠). Renovation completed in 1990, highlights Taiwan industrial history with exhibits on camphor-processing and modern industry.
  • Railway Department Park: On the site of the former Railway Department of the Transportation Administration (台灣總督府交通局鐵道部), features exhibitions on Taiwan’s railway history.

The following historical buildings will also be restored and added to the system as museums:

Exhibitions

The museum has witnessed Taiwan's history and recorded its natural and humanitarian developments. Through this window, one may catch a glimpse of Taiwan's evolution with regard to the fields of earth sciences, humanitarian developments, zoology, and botany.

The museum maintains its original scale, with five departments — anthropology, earth sciences, zoology, botany and education. The collection features specimens of Taiwan's indigenous animals and plants as well as cultural artifacts. Through its regular exhibitions and special exhibitions, publications and various educational programs, the museum is serving the public as an educational establishment.

  • Special exhibitions
  • International exhibitions
  • Touring exhibitions: every year, the museum organizes exhibition tours selected from among the special exhibitions that are suitable for showing in natural history educational halls around the island.
  • Permanent exhibitions:
    • Section on Taiwan's pre-history culture.
    • Section on Taiwan's indigenous culture.
  • Outdoor exhibitions: includes bronze buffaloes, Collection of Stone Tablets, relics of the Giant Stone Culture, old cannons, and old locomotives.

Transportation

The museum is accessible within walking distance northwest from NTU Hospital Station of the Taipei Metro.

See also

References
  1. http://focustaiwan.tw/news/aedu/201711200033.aspx
  2. Special Exhibition｜Back in their times: a visual history of Taiwan from the 1930s to the 1960s, 20 December 2018
  3. "History". National Taiwan Museum. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  4. DeAeth, Duncan (21 November 2017). "National Taiwan Museum reopens after 2 month renovation". Taiwan News. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
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