National Museum of Ghana
Encyclopedia
The National Museum of Ghana is in the Ghana
ian capital, Accra
. It is the largest and oldest of the six museums under the administration of the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board.
The museum building was opened on 5 March 1957 as part of Ghana’s independence celebrations. The official opening was performed by Duchess of Kent
, the late Princess Marina. The Museum's first Director was A.W. Lawrence
.
Objects of archaeology
, ethnography
as well as fine art
find place in the National Museum building.
Objects in the archeology section range from the stone age
period to the recent historical past. Those on permanent exhibition at the ethnography gallery include chief’s regalia
, indigenous Ghanaian musical instrument
s, gold weights, beads, traditional textiles, stools and pottery
. There are also objects from other African countries acquired through exchange. Examples are Senfu masks from Ivory Coast, Zulu wooden figures and bead-ware from Southern Africa. In addition there are also ancient Ife bronze heads from Nigeria
and Bushongo carvings from the Congo. Exhibits at the small but impressive art gallery consist mainly of contemporary Ghanaian paintings executed in oils, pastels, acrylics, watercolours and collage
s. Apart from these there are sculpture pieces in different media.
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
ian capital, Accra
Accra
Accra is the capital and largest city of Ghana, with an urban population of 1,658,937 according to the 2000 census. Accra is also the capital of the Greater Accra Region and of the Accra Metropolitan District, with which it is coterminous...
. It is the largest and oldest of the six museums under the administration of the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board.
The museum building was opened on 5 March 1957 as part of Ghana’s independence celebrations. The official opening was performed by Duchess of Kent
Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent
Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent, née Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark was a member of the British Royal Family; the wife of Prince George, Duke of Kent, the fourth son of King George V of the United Kingdom and Mary of Teck....
, the late Princess Marina. The Museum's first Director was A.W. Lawrence
A.W. Lawrence
Arnold Walter Lawrence was a British authority on classical sculpture and architecture. He was Laurence Professor of Classical Archaeology at Cambridge University in the 1940s, and in the early 1950s in Accra he founded what later became the Ghana Museums and Monuments Board as well as the...
.
Objects of archaeology
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
, ethnography
Ethnography
Ethnography is a qualitative method aimed to learn and understand cultural phenomena which reflect the knowledge and system of meanings guiding the life of a cultural group...
as well as fine art
Fine art
Fine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
find place in the National Museum building.
Objects in the archeology section range from the stone age
Stone Age
The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric period, lasting about 2.5 million years , during which humans and their predecessor species in the genus Homo, as well as the earlier partly contemporary genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus, widely used exclusively stone as their hard material in the...
period to the recent historical past. Those on permanent exhibition at the ethnography gallery include chief’s regalia
Regalia
Regalia is Latin plurale tantum for the privileges and the insignia characteristic of a Sovereign.The word stems from the Latin substantivation of the adjective regalis, 'regal', itself from Rex, 'king'...
, indigenous Ghanaian musical instrument
Musical instrument
A musical instrument is a device created or adapted for the purpose of making musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can serve as a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. The history of musical instruments dates back to the...
s, gold weights, beads, traditional textiles, stools and pottery
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
. There are also objects from other African countries acquired through exchange. Examples are Senfu masks from Ivory Coast, Zulu wooden figures and bead-ware from Southern Africa. In addition there are also ancient Ife bronze heads from Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
and Bushongo carvings from the Congo. Exhibits at the small but impressive art gallery consist mainly of contemporary Ghanaian paintings executed in oils, pastels, acrylics, watercolours and collage
Collage
A collage is a work of formal art, primarily in the visual arts, made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole....
s. Apart from these there are sculpture pieces in different media.