Visit the museum anybody?

“I couldn’t help thinking if by any chance we had the tablet of Akhmenrah, all these exhibits would come to live at night just like in the movie ‘Night at the Museum’. Just imagine the Portuguese, Dutch, British, Japanese, Sultan Mahmud and the present government trying to work things out! I know too much Hollywood influence …”

It was the school holidays the last couple of weeks. Since I had to work, I didn’t take the kids anywhere far. Just the standard shopping, movie, lunch and dinner with them. Well you know the saying, trying to satisfy everyone but not satisfying anyone!

So since the museum was having a reptile exhibition, I thought that it would be fun for them. I’m not much of a reptile fan myself, preferring the more safe animals like cats and butterflies.

It’s been some time since I last went to the museum, during the era when cameras were still banned. Now you can actually take as many photos as you like, at any exhibit no matter in what style. That would give an indication how long it has been since the last time I set foot into our National Museum.

But sad to say I was quickly disappointed to see the reptile exhibition in the main lobby of the museum. There were stiff exhibits of two crocodiles, two iguanas, two monitor lizards and a cobra. Then there was a bunch of dead reptiles in jars, about a dozen of them. It was ‘pathetic’ to say the least. The kids were equally disappointed.

There weren’t even any brochures about the museum or exhibits provided so I had no choice but to go check it out for myself. Well, that’s what museum are for, aren’t they?

If you go to any website on the National Museum, you will find something like this “The museum building presents a panoramic view of the development of Malaysia, as depicted by the two large murals of Italian glass mosaic which extend across the Museum’s facade. Muzium Negara opened on 31 August 1963, is a repository of Malaysia’s rich cultural and historical heritage”.

In my brief research, I found out that the National Museum is a three storied structure of 109.7 meters long and 15.1 meters wide and 37.6 meters at the central point. But the exhibits are only housed on two floors, with four main galleries adjacent to each other.

We started at the first floor at Gallery A which traces the discovery of the stone tools of the Paleolithic Age to the Hindu-Buddhist relics in Lembah Bujang. I lost the kids as they went ahead looking at the exhibits. I took a lazy stroll on my own trying to figure out what was new.

We moved very quickly to Gallery B after the kids found the first gallery was ‘boring’. Gallery B outlines the history of the Malay Kingdoms in the Archipelago, which the main focus was on the Malay Kingdoms of Melaka in the 15^th century. Since we had already learnt all of this in our history books, this was something we could relate to, even the kids.

The displays range from free-standing tableaux showing traditional palace events, beautiful costumes, variety of weapons, musical instruments, precious ceramics and the King’s dais. There were also scary looking statues in a variety of scenes depicting different historical events.

Then we moved on to Gallery C on the 2^nd floor which charts the coming of the Portuguese, Dutch, British and Japanese and the subsequent effects on the political, social and economic situation of Malaysia. This gallery was quite fun as it even has a replica of the A Famosa in Melaka.

It also boasts the early achievements of tin mining in Larut in Perak. There were exhibits of tin ore and a statue of a man with a string near a coconut tree. My kids and I looked up to find nothing at the end of that string. I looked at my kids and said “I think the monkey got away” and we burst out laughing.

Last but not least was Gallery D that guides visitors through the unwavering struggle of the various races for independence of a new nation and the glorious achievements of Malaysia till the present day. This was the gallery that my girls could relate to as this is what they are studying in secondary school.

We walked and my girls started explaining some of the historical events and exhibits to me which was quite cool! We covered kings, prime ministers and even communism in Malaya at that time. Now I know sending them to school has actually been beneficial … (just joking).

There was a section on ‘tengkolok’ (literally translated – headdress for kings). They had Malay names that couldn’t be translated literally, as it is one of those cross-cultural impossibilities that cannot be done without hilarious results. One of it was called ‘Tengkolok Dendam Tak Sudah’ which would mean literally ‘unfinished vendetta’.

But there was another one where we just burst out laughing trying to translate. It was called ‘Tengkolok Ayam Patah Kepak’ which would literally mean ‘broken chicken wing’, see what I mean. I securitized the headdress but just could not fathom why the name. Maybe its just one of those things that we common subjects would not understand.

We left the museum feeling disappointed to say the least. Maybe one of the reasons is because the kids have been to the biggest Museum in South East Asia which is in Terengganu State Museum. Now that was a museum – massive structures, history, maritime and oil. Being the biggest is not always the best some say but this was a museum worth visiting.

It also boasts the history of our beloved present and may I add the most handsome Agung to date, DYMM Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin Ibni Al Marhum Sultan Mahmud.

Of course for some of us that have been fortunate enough to visit museums overseas, ours is a far cry for the word ‘exciting’. Exhibits and history will not change but presentation is everything. Maybe something could be done to enhance the outlook of the sections for a larger pull of the crowds.

Although some of the audio visuals are interesting and commendable but some of it lacks imagination that would cater for a public that is more into high tech gadgets in this day and age. Some were not even operational or under construction which was very disappointing.

I couldn’t help thinking if by any chance we had the tablet of Akhmenrah, all these exhibits would come to live at night just like in the movie ‘Night at the Museum’. Just imagine the Portuguese, Dutch, British, Japanese, Sultan Mahmud Shah and the present government trying to work things out! I know too much Hollywood influence …