Afghanistan’s National Museum To Be Expanded

US Ambassador Karl W. Eikenberry joins Afghan Minister Makhdoom Raheen at a ceremony to announce a new master plan to improve the National Museum of Afghanistan. Photo credit: Sheila Vemmer/U.S. Department of State

In an effort to preserve Afghanistan’s cultural heritage, yesterday, in a ceremony held in the Nuristani room at the National Museum of Afghanistan, the United States Ambassador to Afghanistan, Karl W. Eikenberry, pledged $5 million to support the planning, designing and constructing of a new museum building. Afghanistan’s Ministry of Information and Culture, headed by Makhdoom Raheen, also committed $2 million to support the new museum building.

According to media reports, the new museum building will have “state of the art security, conservation and administrative space and will include beautiful new exhibition space.” The new building will one day be the home for the ‘Hidden Treasures of Afghanistan’ Exhibition”. The exhibit toured various museums in the United States in 2008-2009, and is currently on display in London at the British Museum. The exhibit consists of carved ivories from Bagram, gold jewelry from ancient nomads, and Hellenistic sculptures found in Northern Afghanistan. The land for the site of the new museum building was donated by Afghanistan’s Ministry of Defense.

“My vision is for a museum that will be an even greater source of pride for Afghans from all regions. Afghans need a museum so that our children can learn about our nation’s rich cultural history at the crossroads of East and West”, Makhdoom Raheen said at the ceremony.

The Afghan National Museum was built in 1919.

March 16, 2011 В· admin В· One Comment
Posted in: Cultural Heritage, Reconstruction and Development

One Response

  1. falken - March 30, 2011

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