Located in the capital city of Kuwait, the Kuwait National Museum is the country’s primary museum. Architect Michel Ecochard was responsible for its 1983 inception.
The museum consists of a cluster of five structures organized around a garden, emulating the layout of a traditional Arab mud home. Elevated walkways link the major structures together. According to Ecochard, the arrangement of these structures reflects an understanding of the region’s topography, history, and society.
The museum is divided into 4 distinct areas: First, the Kuwait Heritage Building. Gallery of Ancient Artifacts Planetarium, Number Three, The Al Muhallab Dhow.
The architectural design of the Kuwait National Museum
This historical museum, designed by French architect Michel Ecochard, gives guests a glimpse into traditional Kuwaiti culture, its people, and the city’s illustrious commercial heritage.
The museum’s layout, with five buildings clustered around a garden, is reminiscent of the layout of a traditional Arab mud home. The Al-Sabah dynasty amassed an impressive art collection, some of which are on display in the National Museum of Kuwait.
There are, in fact, two distinct kinds of museums. The first showcases artifacts unearthed on Failika Island, including terracotta and engraved implements, antique wooden doors, a set of the Neolithic age and flint stone cutters and blades, silver statues, a fossilized mammal dating back 16 million years, and bronze coins from the Bronze Age and the Hellenistic era.
The museum also features statues reflecting traditional Kuwaiti culture, vintage photographs from as far back as 1942, and a recreation of a traditional Kuwaiti home from before the advent of modern conveniences. The museum has been repaired and is now showing the objects that were stolen during the Gulf War.
Therefore, a trip to the Kuwait National Museum will be beneficial for those who aren’t familiar with the entire scope of Islamic history and geography.
Visitors to the museum are greeted by gates reminiscent of those of a medieval castle and directed out onto paths lined with mounds of dirt. One unique aspect of the museum is the aluminum space frame that surrounds the inner garden and covers a number of the structures.
The National Museum is organized primarily according to the following themes: The Kuwait Heritage Museum, Planetarium, Archaeological Museum, and Boom Al Mouhallab.
History of Kuwait National Museum
The museum has an impressive past as the former home of the Royal Sabah family of Kuwait. The Department of Antiquity and Museums saw the need for a permanent home for the significant artifacts unearthed at Failaka, so they acquired the Sabah family’s Kuwait City mansion and converted it into the country’s official museum.
The museum’s architectural layout and blueprints were completed in the 1960s, but the building didn’t begin until 1981. On February 23, 1983, two of the four structures opened to the public, and on February 16, 1986, the planetarium was dedicated to the people of the United States.
All museum administrative spaces, including the lecture hall, are located within one of the museum’s four buildings. The permanent exhibits can be seen in the other three buildings.
The museum, which had been looted and damaged by the Iraqi regime during the Gulf War, has reopened to the public after undergoing extensive renovations. The national museum officials indicate that while many of the priceless artifacts have been retrieved, the location of another 487 gems is still unclear.
After the Gulf War destroyed the museum’s beautiful 1930s trading dhow, a duplicate of the ship, named Muhallab II, was built on the museum’s grounds in 1997 and is now available to the public.
Kuwait Heritage Museum
The history section’s life-size recreation of “Old Kuwait” is stunning. In this area, you may see a copy of a traditional souq and models depicting many aspects of daily life in Kuwait.
The original “Al Natur” (guard of the market) was responsible for keeping the marketplace safe and running smoothly. After there, you’ll find a range of traditional stores, followed by the Jewish market (Al Bajajas).
The shop known as Al Bourkhotaah (which is an Indian term) carries primarily Indian-made kitchenware and home furnishings.
Al Kharaj specializes in camel and sheepskin leather goods, mostly footwear.
Bread may be found at Kuwait’s oldest market, Al Khabooj.
The Date Market, or Al Tamoor.
The market for arms, where several firearms were available.
There’s also a model of a classroom complete with students and textbooks, as well as a diwaniyyah full of men, a bride’s chamber, a dining area, a kitchen, a courtyard, a dhow building, and a fishing scene. These brilliant reenactments show what life was like in old Kuwait. Pictures from Kuwait’s history are also on show there.
Kuwait National Planetarium
Carl Zeiss created the planetarium, making it one of the first of its kind in the Persian Gulf area. The 15-meter-tall horizontal dome of the Kuwait National Planetarium has a sky map focused on the northern hemisphere and encircled by the moon’s 28 phases. It was inaugurated in 1986.
More than 550 bright stars and 52 constellations are shown in the dome. On the ground level of the dome, visitors may see models of the solar system, spacecraft, compasses, and antique telescopes.
The ascent to the sky dome takes place via a mural-lined, semicircular path. One shows the cosmos and the solar system, while the other shows the range of sizes from subatomic particles to humans.
Morning and afternoon programs are aired daily in the sky dome show venue. English-language programming occurs only on weekdays at noon. Sundays are museum off days.
In 2007, a further major update was done, this time with full dome capabilities and Uniview to allow for modern interactive voice-over in a 3D setting.
Boom Al-Muhallab
The Boom Al Muhallab, a notable dhow from Kuwait’s maritime past, is fondly remembered by locals. It set sail for the last time in 1949 and eventually found its way to its permanent home in the center of the museum as a gift to the state.
But the dhow can only be seen from the outside. There is now no public access to the inside.
Archaeology Museum
Two chambers in the first structure showcase some of the most amazing objects unearthed on Failaka Island. Failaka Island is located in the Persian Gulf, only 20 kilometers east of Kuwait City.
Failaka Island was apparently a significant location as far back as the Bronze Age, with Ancient Greeks settling there in the fourth century BC. The island was given the name “Ikarus” by Alexander the Great, who established a Greek colony there in 323/322 BC.
Some vintage items, such as cameras, gramophones, radios, weaponry, jewelry, and apparel, are on exhibit. Many artifacts dating back to the Hellenistic period have been unearthed on Failaka, including bronze cauldrons, terracotta pots, coins, flasks, and figurines.
In addition to the beautiful jewelry (necklaces, bracelets, rings, and gemstones), visitors will also view Bronze Age tools, containers, and tripods. Fossils dating back 16 million years are on exhibit with Neolithic flint arrowheads, blades, and cutters.
FAQ’s
- What is the address of the Kuwait National Museum?
9XF8+7QMØ Arabian Gulf Street next to the Seif Palace and Kuwait’s National Assembly, Kuwait City, Kuwait. - What are the opening hours of the Kuwait National Museum?
Monday to Thursday plus Saturdays from 8:30 AM to 12:30 PM and 4:30 PM to 8:30 PM. Fridays from 4:30 PM to 8:30 PM. Closed on Sundays. - How to get to Kuwait National Museum?
Between the Seif Palace and the National Assembly (Parliament) in Kuwait City is where you’ll find the museum. A little distance distant is the Gulf Street-facing Al Sadu home. From the west, access the Gulf Road (25th Street) and make the first left at Al Maarri Street. The primary entrance to the museum is on the right.
