Nairobi
National Museum is located at the Museum
Hill, approximately 10 minutes drive from the Nairobi
City Centre. It houses some of the most celebrated
collections of History, Culture and Art from Kenya
and East Africa. The museum aims to interpret heritage
of Kenya to stimulate appreciation and learning.
This museum is Open Daily (including public
holidays) from 0930hrs - 1800hrs.
Nairobi
National Museum
Day Tour Price includes
*
Price per person
* Professional English speaking guides
*
All entry fees, service charge and taxes
*
Visit to Nairobi National Museum & Snake Park
*
Pickup from your hotel in Nairobi and drop-off to
your hotel
Nairobi
National Museum Day Tour Does Not
include
*
Optional activities
*
Travelers insurance
*
Tips or gratuity, drinks
*
International airfares and airport taxes
*
Laundry, communication charges, visas
*
Meals, sightseeing not included in the package
*
Personal expenses such as transfers to/from the airport
(supplement airport transfer cost applies for tours
starting from the airport)
Nairobi National
Museum
The
recently renovated Nairobi National Museum is a good
place to learn more about Kenya's history and culture.
The construction of the present Museum Hill site began
in 1929 after the government set aside the land for
it. The Museum was officially opened on September
22, 1930, and named Coryndon Museum, in honor of Sir
Robert Coryndon, one time governor of Kenya and a
staunch supporter of the Uganda Natural History Society.
With the opening of the museum, the society moved
its extensive library into the Museum complex.
Part
of this collection made the foundation collection
for what is now the Herbarium. In the early forties
and fifties, the late Dr. Louis Leakey made a public
appeal for funds to enlarge the Museum's galleries.
The result was the construction of all the present
galleries to the right of the main entrance.
These
were named in honor of the Nairobi community members
who made their contributions for the construction.
Today, one finds the Mahatma Gandhi Hall, the Aga
Khan and the Churchill Gallery among others. In the
early sixties the Nairobi Snake Park was built with
the aim to educate the public about snakes and the
common reptiles of Kenya. The Snake Park continues
to be a big attraction in the Museum.
In
1964, the Coryndon Museum changed its name to the
National Museums of Kenya. Beginning from 1969, the
Museum expanded its services and assets beyond Nairobi,
and established museums in Kitale, Meru, Kisumu, Lamu
and Fort Jesus in Mombasa. In addition, the Institute
of Primate Research is also closely associated with
the Museum. Each of these regional museums has its
own identity and develops its own programmes, and
is run under the office of the Director for Regional
Museums, Sites & Monuments.
In
the post 1969 period, the Museums have grown and diversified.
The Leakey Memorial building was opened in 1976 and
houses the administration, archeology and paleontology
departments. The building also houses an auditorium
with a sitting capacity of roughly 300 people which
serves to hold different Museum functions. Also during
this period, research and development programmes were
developed and initiated.
These
included cooperation with the University of Nairobi
and the Institute of African Studies, specializing
in ethnography and cultural anthropology. The Education
department initiated programmes for the thousands
of school children who visit the Museums every year.
The Casting Department sells casts of important fossil
discoveries to Museums worldwide, both for study and
for exhibition.
They
exhibit fossils excavated within East African river
valleys, which is believed to be the origin of human
kind. The Kenya National Museum also displays a variety
of stuffed bird species and displays diverse Kenyan
culture. There are three Pillars of Kenya’s
National heritage i.e. Nature, Culture
and History. Under the Nature Pillar,
there are 5 exhibitions.
Nature
Pillar |
Culture
Pillar |
History
Pillar |
|
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Geology
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Human origins
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Natural Diversity
*
Ecology of Kenya
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Mammalian Radiation
|
*
Creativity
*
Cycles of Life
*
Cultural Dynamism
|
*
Cycles of Life History of Kenya
*
Cycles of Life Kenya Before 1850
|
