This is a large, spacious museum with many elegant features to its architecture, as historic itself as the exhibits it contains. Even if one has only a few hours, it is worth seeking out, and admission is free, except for some special exhibits. The grounds are dotted with special sculpture displays and beautiful landscaping.
From the Wikipedia entry for
National Museum of Singapore:
The National Museum of Singapore is a national museum in Singapore and the oldest museum in Singapore. Its history dates back to 1849 when it was started as a section of a library at Singapore Institution. After several relocations, the Museum was relocated to its permanent site at Stamford Road at the Museum Planning Area in 1887.
The Museum was named the National Museum of Singapore in 1965. For a brief period between 1993 and March 2006, it was known as the Singapore History Museum, before reverting to its previous name. The Museum underwent a three-and-a-half-year restoration and reopened on 2 December 2006, with the Singapore History Gallery opening on 8 December of the same year.
Wikipedia provides these additional details about the restoration of the tiles and stained glass panels of the dome:
The fish scaled tiles were all taken down and cleaned, all 3,000 tiles were individually numbered to allow it to be replaced in the correct sequence. Every row of tiles was shaped differently, so as to match the curves of the dome. Badly restored tiles were removed and new replaced tiles were made in the original zinc material used in the old 19th century tiles made in Manchester, England. The tiles had deteriorated badly due to the effects of acid rain. A titanium-zinc-based coating was used to protect the new tiles, to prevent further oxidation and erosion.
On the building's dome, there are stained glass panels, these panels were all taken down, inspected and cleaned. These panels had deteriorated due to its age and the effects of gravity on the lead works. Each panel had to be transported in a special mould and sent to a stained glass restorer who used 18th century reinforcement techniques to restore the lead and glass works; the process took four months to complete.
From the National Museum of Singapore web site:
The National Museum of Singapore is the nation's oldest museum established in 1887 when Singapore was part of the Straits Settlements. Reopened in December 2006 after three years of extensive restoration, the museum – a National Monument – now presents permanent exhibitions on Singapore history and popular culture, alongside changing exhibitions on world history and popular culture. It is Singapore’s largest and most modern museum, using state-of-the-art multimedia technology to bring history to life.
Visitors to the permanent galleries will come up close and personal with national treasures, such as the mystery-shrouded Singapore Stone and 14th century gold ornaments unearthed from nearby Fort Canning Hill. They will also learn more about Singapore’ s multi-racial and multi-religious society, and how popular culture has evolved over time.
Alongside the permanent galleries, the special exhibition galleries provide Singaporeans and visitors with the opportunity to learn more about world heritage and cultures here in Singapore, through major touring and special exhibitions presented in partnership with museums worldwide.