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| Established | 11 November 1952 |
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| Location | Malé, Maldives |
| Coordinates | 4°10′30″N73°30′32″E / 4.17500°N 73.50889°E |
Established on the National Day of the Maldives, the first National Museum of the country was opened on 11 November 1952, [2] by the Prime Minister at the time, Mohamed Amin Didi.
With the purpose of preserving history and instilling patriotism among the people of the Maldives,[ citation needed ] the museum has a large collection of historical artifacts, ranging from stone objects to fragments of royal antiquities from the Buddhist era to the rule of Islamic monarchs.
The museum was previously administered by the Maldivian Center for Linguistic and Historical Research.[ citation needed ] However, on 28 April 2010, this institution was abolished by President Mohamed Nasheed and its charge of the museum's responsibilities given to the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture while the linguistic and historical research responsibilities were handed over to the Maldives College of Higher Education. [3]
The three-story museum (old building) is located in the Sultan Park in Malé, which is part of the site of the Maldivian Royal Palace compound dating back to the 17th century. The two-storey Us-gēkolhu is the only remaining structure of the palace demolished by fire in 1968.
The new building of the museum is also located in Sultan Park. The building was designed, built and financed by the Chinese government. The building was presented to the Maldives by the Chinese government on 10 July 2010, but was officially opened and declared as the national museum two weeks later on Maldives' Independence Day, 26 July 2010.
The interior of the museum has been retained from the days of the Sultanate, including the handwritten Qur'an engraved on the walls of the building.
A diverse collection of artifacts are displayed in the museum, including relics from the foregone pre-Islamic period era, thrones, royal sunshades and furniture, costumes and shoes, coins, ornaments, arms and armor.
Others examples include textiles such as ceremonial dresses, turbans, fancy slippers and belts used on special occasions, mats, lacquer work and other creative embroidery.
Highlights of the collections include:[ citation needed ]
The Buddhist statues were deliberately destroyed by Islamists in February 2012. Museum director Ali Waheed said that almost all the museum's pre-Islamic artifacts, dating back to before the 12th century, had been destroyed: "Some of the pieces can be put together but mostly they are made of sandstone, coral and limestone, and they are reduced to powder." He said the museum had "nothing [left] to show" of the country's pre-Islamic history. [4] [5]
Among the damaged objects were a six-faced coral statue, an 18 in (46 cm) high bust of Buddha, as well as assorted limestone and coral statues. [6]
The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, and historically known as Maldive Islands, is a country and archipelagic state in South Asia in the Indian Ocean. The Maldives is named after the main island and capital, Malé. The Maldives is southwest of Sri Lanka and India, about 750 kilometres from the Asian continent's mainland. The Maldives' chain of 26 atolls stretches across the equator from Ihavandhippolhu Atoll in the north to Addu Atoll in the south.
The history of the Maldives is intertwined with the history of the broader Indian subcontinent and the surrounding regions, comprising the areas of South Asia and Indian Ocean; and the modern nation consisting of 26 natural atolls, comprising 1194 islands. Historically, the Maldives held a strategic importance due to its location on the major marine routes of the Indian Ocean. The Maldives' nearest neighbours are the British Indian Ocean Territory, Sri Lanka and India. The United Kingdom, Sri Lanka and some Indian kingdoms have had cultural and economic ties with the Maldives for centuries. In addition to these countries, Maldivians also traded with Aceh and many other kingdoms in, what is today, Indonesia and Malaysia. The Maldives provided the main source of cowrie shells, then used as a currency throughout Asia and parts of the East African coast. Most probably Maldives were influenced by Kalingas of ancient India who were earliest sea traders to Sri Lanka and the Maldives from India and were responsible for the spread of Buddhism. Stashes of Chinese crockery found buried in various locations in the Maldives also show that there was direct or indirect trade contact between China and the Maldives. In 1411 and 1430, the Chinese admiral Zheng He 鄭和 visited the Maldives. The Chinese also became the first country to establish a diplomatic office in the Maldives, when the Chinese nationalist government based in Taipei opened an embassy in Malé in 1966. This office has since been replaced by the embassy of the People's Republic of China.
The Maldivian rufiyaa is the currency of the Maldives. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA). The most commonly used symbols for the rufiyaa are MVR and Rf. The ISO 4217 code for Maldivian rufiyaa is MVR. The rufiyaa is subdivided into 100 laari.
Huvadhu, Suvadive, Suvaidu or Suvadiva is the atoll with the most islands in the world. The atoll is located in the Indian Ocean. It is south of the Suvadiva Channel in the Republic of Maldives with a total area of 3,152 km2, of which 38.5 km2 is dry land. The atoll contains 255 islands.
Islam is the state religion of Maldives. The 2008 Constitution or "Fehi Gānoon" declares the significance of Islamic law in the country. The constitution requires that citizenship status be based on adherence to the state religion, which legally makes the country's citizens 100% Muslim.
Fuvahmulah is an island (atoll) in the Maldives. It is under Maldives’ administrative division of Gnaviyani Atoll. The island is the second southernmost administrative atoll, located to the south of Huvadhu Atoll and to the north of Seenu Atoll. It’s also the third most populous island after Malé and Addu.
Vaadhoo is an inhabited island of Gaafu Dhaalu region in the atoll of Huvadhu, Maldives. It has its own dialect of Maldivian, which is considerably different from northern and Mid-Maldivian speech.
Dhanbidhoo or Dambidū is one of the inhabited islands of Haddummati Atoll, administrative code Laamu.
Kaashidhoo is one of the inhabited islands of Kaafu Atoll.
Several Dhivehi scripts have been used by Maldivians during their history. The early Dhivehi scripts fell into the abugida category, while the more recent Thaana has characteristics of both an abugida and a true alphabet. An ancient form of Nagari script, as well as the Arabic and Devanagari scripts, have also been extensively used in the Maldives, but with a more restricted function. Latin was official only during a very brief period of the Islands' history.
Nilandhoo is the capital of Faafu Atoll, a region with five inhabited islands. It is the largest and most populated island in the region, and includes historical sites such as foah'mathi and Aasaari Miskiy and a school. Foah'mathi is a historical site with a Buddhist temple under it, while Aasaari Miskiy is the second mosque built in the Maldives.
Haddhunmathi or LaamuAtoll is an administrative division of the Maldives. The administrative capital is Fonadhoo Island. It corresponds to the natural atoll of the same name. It is mostly rimmed by barrier reefs, the broadest of which are topped by islands. There are many islands along its eastern and southern boundaries. This atoll is quite regular excepting for the projection of the reef at its NE corner. It closely resembles Kolhumadulhu, its neighbour further north. Owing to its typical atoll shape, it differs in no respect from atolls in the Pacific Ocean, save for its greater size. Its reefs are generally of little breadth, with no signs of vilu, except for its eastern fringes which are covered with islands that are quite large by Maldivian standards. The lagoon is comparatively open, containing scattered shoal patches; the bottom is muddy and the average depth is from 30 to 34 fathoms.
Islam is the state religion of Maldives. The 2008 Constitution or "Fehi Qānoon" declares the significance of Islamic law in the country. The constitution requires that citizenship status be based on adherence to the state religion, which legally makes the country's citizens hundred percent Muslim. However residents, tourists and workers in the Maldives are free to be of any religion and practise them in private. However, in 2020, studies found that 0.29% of the population is Christian. During the late 1990s, the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs issued warnings, cautioning individuals against listening to radio programs broadcast in the Dhivehi language by the Far East Broadcasting Association, headquartered in the Seychelles. In 1998, 50 Maldivian Christians faced arrest and were detained on the prison island of Dhoonidhoo, while foreign Christians suspected of engaging in missionary activities were expelled from the country.
Buddhism was the predominant religion in the Maldives until at least the 12th century CE. It isn't clear how and when Buddhism was introduced into the islands.
Dhadimagu is an administrative division of Fuvahmulah, Maldives. It is the largest division of the island, located in the northern part of the island. Throughout history, many scholars and famous public figures came into being from this district housing many of the historical sites and landmarks of the island. A center of learning as well as an important location for the island's economy, the number of 'Hafiz's and teachers from this district outnumber that of any other district in Fuvahmulah, and this district is considered by many to be the most educated and learning-centered district of Fuvahmulah.
The Malé Friday Mosque or the Malé Hukuru Miskiy also known as the Old Friday Mosque is one of the oldest and most ornate mosques in the city of Malé, Kaafu Atoll, Maldives. Coral boulders of the genus Porites, found throughout the archipelago, are the basic materials used for construction of this and other mosques in the country because of its suitability. Although the coral is soft and easily cut to size when wet, it makes sturdy building blocks when dry. The mosque was added to the tentative UNESCO World Heritage cultural list in 2008 as unique examples of sea-culture architecture.
Maldivians are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group and nation native to the historic region of the Maldive Islands, present day Republic of Maldives and the island of Minicoy in Union Territory of Lakshadweep, India. Maldivians share one culture and speak the Maldivian language, which is a member of the southern group of Indo-Aryan languages. For ethnographic and linguistic purposes as well as geopolitical reasons, anthropologists divide the Maldivian people into three subgroups.
Maamigili is one of the uninhabited islands of Raa Atoll in the Maldives.
The Sultanate of Maldive Islands was an Islamic monarchy that controlled the Maldives for 815 years (1153–1968), with interruption.
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