The National Museum of Tanzania is a consortium of five

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands ...

n museums whose purpose is to preserve and show exhibits about the history and natural environment of Tanzania. The consortium developed from the National Museum of Dar es Salaam, established in 1934 by Tanganyika governor

Harold MacMichael Sir Harold Alfred MacMichael (15 October 1882 – 19 September 1969) was a British colonial administrator who served as High Commissioner for Palestine. Early service Educated at Bedford School, MacMichael graduated with a first from Magdalene ...

. Four more museums later joined the consortium, namely the Village Museum in Dar es Salaam, the National History Museum and the Arusha Declaration Museum in

Arusha Arusha City is a Tanzanian city and the regional capital of the Arusha Region, with a population of 416,442 plus 323,198 in the surrounding Arusha District Council (2012 census). Located below Mount Meru on the eastern edge of the eastern bran ...

, and the Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere Memorial Museum in

Butiama Butiama is a town and capital of Butiama District, located in Mara Region in northern Tanzania. The town of Butiama is the birthplace of Julius Nyerere, the founding father and the first president of Tanzania. Butiama is also the homeland of ...

Dar es Salaam National Museum

The Dar es Salaam National Museum is located in Shabban Robert Street, next to the

botanical gardens A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

in Kivukoni ward in

Ilala District Ilala District (Officially known as Ilala Municipal Council ) is one of five districts in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, the others being Temeke to the South and Kinondoni to the North and Ubungo to the northwest. The 2012 National Tanzania Census s ...

. Established in 1934 and open to the public since 1940, it was originally a memorial museum dedicated to

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

; one of the cars of the King is still on display. The museum was expanded in 1963, with the addition of a second building. It is now dedicated to the history of Tanzania. Its most famous exhibits include some bones of '' Paranthropus boisei'' that were among the findings of Louis Leakey at Olduvai. The museum also has a large section dedicated to the Shirazi city-state of

Kilwa Kilwa Kisiwani (English: ''Kilwa Island'') is an island, national historic site, and hamlet community located in the township of Kilwa Masoko, the district seat of Kilwa District in the Tanzanian region of Lindi Region in southern Tanzania. K ...

. More historical miscellaneous material is related to the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

and British rule, and ancient

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of ...

pottery Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and ...

. The museum also has

ethnographic Ethnography (from Greek ''ethnos'' "folk, people, nation" and ''grapho'' "I write") is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject ...

collections on Tanzanian cultures.

Village Museum

The Kijiji cha Makumbusho, or Village Museum, established in 1967, is an open-air

ethnographical Ethnography (from Greek ''ethnos'' "folk, people, nation" and ''grapho'' "I write") is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject o ...

museum located in the outskirts of Dar es Salaam, on the road to

Mwenge Mwenge is a county of the Kyenjojo district in Uganda }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the ...

and

Bagamoyo Bagamoyo, is a historic coastal town founded at the end of the 18th century, though it is an extension of a much older (8th century) Swahili settlement, Kaole. It was chosen as the capital of German East Africa by the German colonial administra ...

. It showcases traditional

hut A hut is a small dwelling, which may be constructed of various local materials. Huts are a type of vernacular architecture because they are built of readily available materials such as wood, snow, ice, stone, grass, palm leaves, branches, hid ...

s from 16 different Tanzanian ethnic groups. There are also examples of traditional cultivations, and traditional music and dance shows are held daily.

National Natural History Museum

The National Natural History Museum in Arusha, open since 1987, is located in Arusha, in Boma Road. It has two permanent exhibits, respectively on

human evolution Human evolution is the evolutionary process within the history of primates that led to the emergence of '' Homo sapiens'' as a distinct species of the hominid family, which includes the great apes. This process involved the gradual development o ...

and entomology.

Arusha Declaration Museum

The Arusha Declaration Museum, open since 1977, is located in Arusha, in Kaloleni Road. It displays documents on the

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

history of

, the fight for independence, and the Arusha Declaration where the first Tanzanian president

Julius Nyerere Julius Kambarage Nyerere (; 13 April 1922 – 14 October 1999) was a Tanzanian anti-colonial activist, politician, and political theorist. He governed Tanganyika as prime minister from 1961 to 1962 and then as president from 1962 to 1964, af ...

outlined his political vision.

Nyerere Museum

The Mwalimu Julius K. Nyerere Memorial Museum, or Nyerere Museum for short, was established in the year 1999. It is located in

, where Tanzania's first president

was born and was buried. The museum display items related to Nyerere's personal and political life.

External links

Presentation of the National Museum of Tanzania
by Dutch commercial organization momaa.org

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:National Museum Of Tanzania Museums in Tanzania Buildings and structures in Dar es Salaam Buildings and structures in Arusha Culture in Dar es Salaam Tourist attractions in the Arusha Region Butiama Tourist attractions in Dar es Salaam Buildings and structures in the Mara Region Tourist attractions in the Mara Region