Mrauk-U museum to be relocated: Archaeology Department

By Admin 18 Sep 2023

DMG Newsroom
18 September 2023, Mrauk-U

An archaeological museum located in Nan Yar Kone Ward in the ancient Arakanese city of Mrauk-U will be relocated, with a new museum planned to be built.

The Mrauk-U Museum is more than 90 years old and is showing its age, so cultural heritage preservationists including the Department of Archeology and National Museum are planning to build a new museum. It will be built on a two-acre plot of land.

“Since the current museum is not up to standard, the new museum will be built magnificently. The Department of Archeology and National Museum has submitted a budget request to the state military council,” said a cultural heritage preservationist in Mrauk-U.

Mrauk-U residents say an upgrade is long overdue.

“The antiquities inside the museum are covered with tarpaulins. The roofs are already sagging. The space is small, so the antiques are not tidily displayed. It will be good if the museum is relocated to a new place,” said Ma Hay Mon Hlaing, a resident of Hsinchaseik Ward in Mrauk-U.

Siting of the new museum could prove contentious, however. 

“Some residents do not like the museum’s location. If a new museum is to be built, it needs to not affect the ancient heritage. We should not agree to the construction of new museums in places related to antiquity,” said U Shwe Kyaw Oo, a community elder in Mrauk-U. 

“We are still looking for a land plot to build a new museum,” U Maung Hsan Win, deputy director of the Department of Archeology and National Museum, told DMG. “After getting the necessary land plot, we have to draw the designs for the new museum and do the necessary steps, step by step.”

The museum’s current building was constructed around 1932, during the British colonial period.

While it may be considered old by modern standards, the museum is relatively young compared with the stupas and temples that Mrauk-U is known for, many of which date back hundreds of years. Efforts were begun in 2017 to nominate Mrauk-U for eventual recognition as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.