Participating Institutions
Asian Civilisations Museum, Singapore
ACM is Singapore’s national museum of Asian antiquities and decorative art. As the only museum in Asia with a pan-Asian scope, ACM is devoted to exploring the rich artistic heritage of Asia through our outstanding collection of masterpieces, and through ground-breaking special exhibitions. ACM focuses on the many historical connections between cultures and civilisations in Asia, and between Asia and the world.
Singapore’s history as a port city that brought people together from all over the world is used as a means of examining the history of Asia. Objects on display tell stories of the trade and the exchange of ideas that were the result of international commerce, as well as the flow of religions and faith through Asia.
Galleries on the First Level tell the story of Trade. The story begins in the 9th century, with the Tang Shipwreck display. The more than 1000 pieces of ceramics, gold, and silver displayed tell the story of the bustling Indian Ocean trade, and of globalisation long before the term was coined. Second-Level galleries present systems of Faith and Belief; their origins in Asia, their spread across the continent by land and by sea, and their localisation each step of the way. Decorative art is the focus on the third floor, highlighting a major aspect of the museum's collection. Materials and Design affirms the museum's dedication to the aesthetics and craftsmanship of objects that illuminate global, regional and local exchanges.
Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, Cambodia
Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts is a government ministry that supports the arts and culture in Cambodia. The ministry oversees 25 provincial Department of Culture and Fine Arts.
The Department of Archaeology is responsible for overseeing underwater cultural heritage projects, including the surfacing and cataloguing of the Koh Sdech shipwreck in 2006. A number of items were located in the wreckage, including cooking pots with lids, storage jars with four loop-handles of different sizes, basins, bottles, dishes, plates, mortars, porcelain and celadon bowls. The majority of the haul consisted of ceramic jars which, with radiocarbon dating, were determined to originate from the 15th Century, and more specifically, the Mae Nam Noi kilns in Singbori province and the Si Satachanalai kilns in Sukhothai province. As UNESCO states, “This shipwreck is a good example of the connection of Cambodia to maritime trade routes in the gulf of Thailand and mainland Southeast Asia”.
Cambodia’s first underwater archaeology research and capacity building project has just commenced in 2021, with a partnership established between the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and Professor Sarah Ward of the Dalian Maritime Museum, China.
Museum Bahari Jakarta, Indonesia
The Maritime Museum (Museum Bahari) is located in the old Sunda Kelapa harbor area in Jakarta. The museum was inaugurated inside the former Dutch East India Company warehouses. There are two groups of warehouses, one on the west bank of the Ciliwung River (or the Westzijdsche Pakhuizen) and one group on the east bank (or the Oostzijdsche Pakhuizen). Three out of the four warehouses located on the west bank are now used for the Museum Bahari.
The museum focuses on the maritime history of Indonesia and the importance of the sea to the economy of present-day Indonesia, including an impressive collection of boat replicas gathered from all over the Indonesian archipelago; a rare collection of pinisi and kora-kora (war vessels) replicas; Indonesian naval history depicted in unique pictures taken on sea and in local harbors; a collection dedicated to the local maritime flora and fauna'; and a special collection showcasing tools and specific Indonesian items used in maritime transport.
Museo Maritimo, Philippines
On 23 March 2012, Museo Maritimo had its grand launch at the Philippine Trade and Training Center, the first maritime-themed museum in the country, that showcases its long and rich maritime history and how it has developed through centuries. Museo Maritimo is a project envisioned and initiated by the Asian Institute of Maritime Studies (AIMS), in collaboration with Hiniraya Cultural and Heritage Foundation and its partner organisation ICOM Philippines. Museo Maritimo utilises imaginative exhibitions and displays to illustrate what the Philippine seafaring, training and manning history is and who its leaders are. Furthermore, it serves as a repository for valuable collections of marine art, ship models, and nautical artifacts.
The museum promotes heritage awareness, as well as conducts quality research, conferences, seminars, and lectures that explore maritime pasts, presents, and futures.
The museum features six exhibition spaces, showcasing pre-colonial maritime history of the Philippines, Philippine maritime history during the Spanish Era, a children’s gallery, contemporary Philippine maritime industries, the Philippine Navy and Coast Guard, and the organisational history of the Asian Institute of Maritime Studies. Navigational artifacts, dioramas, model boats and documentary and visual material provide visitors with a detailed insight into the rich and varied maritime history and present of the Philippines.
National Maritime Museum Chanthaburi, Thailand
The National Maritime Museum Chanthaburi was established in 1994 in order to be a conservation center for underwater archaeological evidences which found in Thailand. The opening day was in 9th January 2001. The museum is a twin building display an exhibition about Thailand Maritime and Chanthaburi province history by six exhibition rooms.
The six exhibition rooms showcase a vast selection of artifacts and historical information about the maritime history of Thailand, including; a full scale model of a sea cargo ship, historical artifacts retrieved from shipwrecks in the Gulf of Thailand (both within the exhibition space and a specially designed storage room that provides visual access to visitors), model ships such as dugout boat, passenger boats and the royal barge, and photographs of the Samed-Ngam dock in Chanthaburi, where archaeologists have preserved the wooden remains of junks and warships underwater.
National Museum of Singapore
The National Museum of Singapore was established in the 19th century as the Raffles Library and Museum. The idea of the museum was first mooted by the Christian missionary and scholar Robert Morrison at a meeting with Sir Stamford Raffles on 1 April 1823. At that meeting, Dr Morrison, supported Raffles’ ideas for founding a school in Singapore, and proposed that a library and museum could be added as well, as a means of – in his words – “diffusing knowledge”. This was in line with Raffles’ own objectives for the institution, one of which was to “collect the scattered literature and traditions of the country, with whatever may illustrate their laws and customs, and to publish and circulate in a correct form the most important of these, with such other works as may be calculated to raise the character of the institution and to be useful or instructive to the people”.
The Library opened in the premises of Singapore Institution in 1845, and it was known to house the museum from about 1849. In 1874 the Library and Museum came under a Government appointed committee, which agreed to name it the “Raffles Library and Museum”. It was in 1887 that the purpose-built building for the Raffles Library and Museum was finally opened to the public. This is the building exists today as the National Museum of Singapore (NMS), a museum that is now dedicated to presenting the story of Singapore as situated in the region and world.
Beneath its 19th-century colonial exterior, it uses cutting-edge technology to present the nation’s legacy and development. Its galleries highlight fresh perspectives of the Singapore story as they take you on an immersive voyage – one where creative storytelling redefines the conventional museum experience.
Negeri Rempah Foundation, Indonesia
Negeri Rempah Foundation is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to increasing public awareness to learn and obtain knowledge about Indonesian diversity through educational and cultural activities.
Negeri Rempah Foundation starts from a humble beginning. Before it was established, several volunteers from various backgrounds which concerns about how Indonesian young generation is less interested in their history and culture, initiated a series of cultural trip programs with diverse themes since 2012. One of the themes of cultural trips was the history of the spice trade in the Indonesian archipelago. Along with the growth of this community, in 2018 the foundation was established to maintain the sustainability of the program.
As #JalurRempah or Spice Route provides unique contextual perspective as an entry point to encourage public to have a new understanding on how spice route has been the melting pot of ideas, concepts, praxis which contributed toward modern civilization, the foundation aims to foster intercultural learning and understanding through cross-sectoral collaborative participation in both local and global context. Through this foundation, experts, professionals and communities from diverse backgrounds share and exchange their knowledge and experience to public.
Negeri Rempah Foundation positions itself as a node institution that connects experts, professionals, practitioners, policymakers, and communities from various scientific backgrounds to share their knowledge and experience with the public. Our initiatives cover the fields of education, culture, arts, to business empowerment. Primarily public initiatives, our programs include research; discussions forums and sharing sessions; workshops; book publishing; exhibitions; festivals; cultural expeditions; art and culture collaborations - aiming at broader audience.
Sarawak Museum Department, Malaysia
Sarawak Museum was established by Charles Brooke the Second Rajah in 1860 and thanks to the great naturalist, Alfred Russell Wallace for his influence. They realized their intentions by setting up a temporary museum at the Market place, along Gambier Street Kuching in 30th October 1886. Later a proper museum was built at its present site and opened its door to the public on 4th August 1891.
The museum grew slowly maintaining the indigenous pride, identity and tradition of our people, Sarawakians. It survived the Second World War. Even standing on a sounder footing when Sarawak gained its independence through the formation of Malaysia in 1963. As the result, Sarawak Museum enjoys the international recognition not only as a superb museum but also as a research centre in Borneo where Sarawak Museum Journals are published annually for the world circulation since 1910.
It is a keeper of the rich culture and history of Sarawak and the first class repository of Borneo culture. In appreciation of its existence, Sarawak Museum was established as a full-fledged department under the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Sarawak. Currently, the Sarawak Museum Department oversees 11 museum and heritage sites, including; Sarawak Museum, Sarawak Islamic Heritage Museum, Chinese History Museum, Sarawak Textile Museum, Natural History Museum, Sarawak Art Museum, Sri Aman Heritage Museum (Fort Alice), Petroleum Museum (Miri), Niah Archaeology Museum, Limbang Regional Museum (Old Fort), and Baram Regional Museum (Fort Hose).
A new Sarawak Museum complex is set to open in 2022 and will be the second largest museum in Southeast Asia, showcasing 1,660 exhibits.
