KUCHING: Sarawak Museum Department will officially launch the biggest museum in Malaysia and the second biggest museum in Southeast Asia, proudly named Borneo Cultures Museum, in less than 24 hours.
The iconic landmark which is the biggest development project in the history of the Sarawak Museum since it was established in 1891 will be graced by the Head of State Tun Pehin Sri Abdul Taib Mahmud at 8pm tomorrow night.
The brand-new museum and annexe building was built under the 11th Malaysia Plan as part of the Sarawak Museum Campus Project.
The development of Borneo Cultures Museum began in 2014 at a cost of RM323 million, fully funded by the state government.
The new museum’s permanent exhibitions which showcase over a thousand artefacts highlighting Sarawak’s rich cultures and history are integrated with state-of-the-art technology, offering immersive and interactive experiences to visitors.
As such, the usage of modern technology in the museum enhances the artefact displays and supports the storyline of the exhibition that promises to wow visitors.
The total floor space for the two buildings including the annexe is approximately 31,000 metres with 6,638 square metres allocated for exhibition space.
Besides being the biggest museum in Malaysia and second biggest museum in Southeast Asia, the building incorporates the Green Building design element in its interior, thus, making the Borneo Cultures Museum the first museum in Malaysia to be certified as a Green Building under the Green Building Index (GBI).
The five-storey building consists of permanent exhibitions, children’s gallery, temporary exhibition, function room, VIP room, auditorium, restaurant, canteen and a souvenir shop. Moreover, there is also an arts and crafts gallery which includes special activity labs and a dance studio.
The exhibition strategy divides the exhibitions into different levels with unique storylines and themes which took two years of interpretive planning to complete.
The theme for Level 3 is ‘In Harmony’ which explores the relationship between humans and nature; Level 4 is ‘Time Changes’ which tells the history of Sarawak and Borneo from prehistoric times to the 1970s and Level 5 is ‘Objects of Desire’ which showcases the most cherished objects by Sarawak’s ethnic groups.
On Level 2 with the theme of ‘Love Our Rivers’, the floor is specifically designed to fulfill a vital social responsibility by empowering children’s imagination, creativity and environmental stewardship.
With the museum scheduled to be open to the public on March 9, Sarawak Museum Department is encouraging visitors to pre-book their visit as entry is limited to 500 people in the building at a time.
