Museums in Nepal

Museums in Nepal

The history of this museum in Nepal started from an Arsenal house, built by Prime Minister General Bhimsen Thapa in 1824. In 1926 Rana Prime Minister Chandra Shumsher added two wings in the north and south of the main building and it was given the name of Silkhana Museum. In 1938 Rana Prime Minister Juddha Shumsher changed its name to Nepal Museum and it was opened to the public on 12th February 1939.
Prime Minister Juddha Shumsher has established Judhha Jatiya Kala Bhavan in front of the Nepal Museum in 1943 A.D. and opened to the public on 18th April 1943 A.D. In the beginning, it was known as Arsenal Museum which was transformed into Nepal Museum in 1939 A.D. which is regarded as formal establishment of museum in Nepal. Later on, it changed its name to National Museum in 1968 A.D., which is remained popular till today. So, National Museum is the first museum of Nepal which carries the foundation of around two hundred years and history of museum more than 8 decades. According to Department of Archaeology, there are more than 50 museums in Nepal . However, the trends of opening and operating museum by community,, non-government and private sector is also increasing .