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In
January 1877, the completed building of the Colombo Museum was declared open by Governor Gregory, in the presence of a large crowd, amongst which there were many Muslims. At the end of the ceremony, the governor asked Wapchi Marikar what honour he wished to have for his dedication. He asked the
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was the assistant director of the
Department of Anthropology in the museum, and the assistant director of the National Museum. In his tenure, he established an anthropological deposit in the National Museum. He also organized many temporary exhibitions in the National Museum.
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During the period between 1877 and 1999, the authorities of the museum took various steps to display the cultural and natural heritage of the country for this purpose. Several other wings were added from time to time under the direction of Dr.
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was also established on 1 January 1877 incorporating the
Government Oriental Library that had been established in 1870. Since 1885, by law, a copy of every document printed in the country is required to be lodged with the museum library.
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The construction of the museum was carried out by Arasi
Marikar Wapchie Marikar (1829–1925, aka Wapchi Marikar, who was descended from the Sheiq Fareed family who arrived in Ceylon in 1060), the paternal grandfather of Sir
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and a fully-fledged department of national museum was established in 1942 under the act No. 31. Nine branch museums were ultimately opened, and a school science programme and a mobile museum service are also in operation.
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was instrumental in bringing to the notice of
Gregory on his appointment as governor in 1872 the need for a public museum, with some difficulty the approval of the legislative council was obtained within a year. The
260:, Batternburg Battery and a number of other buildings that are still standing today (2011). The Old Town Hall in Pettah, which is now a busy market, was built on a contract for the sum of 689 Pounds Sterling.
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same question of the carpenter S. M. Perera who was responsible for the woodwork of the museum, who requested and was awarded a local rank. Marikar requested that the museum be closed on
Fridays, the Muslim
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240:(1833–1910) was able to prepare the plans for a new structure in the Italian Architectural style. The construction was completed in 1876 and the museum opened the following year.
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and Dr. Joseph
Pearson new structures were built during the period of Dr. P. E. P. Deraniyagala, Dr. P. H. D. H. de Silva and Sirinimal Lakdusinghe. One of the
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museum, and yet another consists of the auditorium. These buildings would facilitate the extension of the library ethnological and
Anthropological studies.
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The museum was given the status of a national museum during the period of P. E. P. Deraniyagala. He opened branch museums in
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became the first woman director of the
National Museum of Colombo. She served from 1982 through 1994.
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Museum, as it was initially called, was established on 1 January 1877. Its founder was
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When the throne of the last
Kandyan king was to be exhibited at the museum, the
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A library was also established on 1 January 1877. The government
443:"ICTA & National Museum launch Sri Lanka museums mobile app"
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Sculpture of the Buddha located at the entrance of the museum.(
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Archaeological protected monuments in Colombo District
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1159:Maritime and Naval History Museum, Trincomalee
466:"Swords and fire power add to new-look museum"
352:. The crown jewels and the throne of the last
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538:, Digital Library, retrieved 10 December 2013
256:, Victoria Arcade, Finlay Moir building, the
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601:"From a quiet love affair to wedding bells"
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550:"National museum: looking back 130 years"
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187:. Founded in 1877 and maintained by the
1139:Highway museum complex, Kiribathkumbura
576:"National Museum: Window into the past"
497:Jayawardane, Ishara (12 October 2017).
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445:. Lanka Business Online. 15 March 2017
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536:The female as Cult Object in Buddhism
367:library (1870) was incorporated into
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574:Salie, Ryhanna (23 February 2018).
464:Silva, Dhananjani (22 March 2009).
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172:
170:
29:
887:SSC Stadium
301:Skeleton at
131: /
106:Coordinates
100:, Sri Lanka
79:Established
1439:Categories
1215:(Regional)
788:Historical
765:Beira Lake
717:Government
510:12 October
504:Daily News
477:12 October
449:12 October
429:References
119:79°51′39″E
86:1877-01-01
1081:(Subject)
926:Education
781:landmarks
743:Geography
334:Ratnapura
185:Sri Lanka
116:6°54′36″N
417:See also
365:Oriental
94:Location
854:Culture
672:History
665:Colombo
610:27 June
585:27 June
559:27 June
266:sabbath
217:Colombo
203:History
195:of the
193:regalia
181:Colombo
154:Website
144:Founder
98:Colombo
84: (
1354:Museum
880:Sports
332:, and
326:Jaffna
227:. The
159:museum
330:Kandy
968:UCSC
612:2021
587:2018
561:2018
512:2017
479:2017
451:2017
408:The
346:Tara
215:The
171:The
161:.gov
163:.lk
1441::
603:.
578:.
552:.
501:.
487:^
468:.
328:,
275:,
1026:e
1019:t
1012:v
657:e
650:t
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589:.
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514:.
481:.
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290:)
88:)
20:)
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