Best Museums of Singapore

Singapore is renowned as a destination for shopping and ‘food-based’ adventures, but the lion state has been building up an impressive cultural repository over the years. Singapore today is home to several interesting art filled museums, which are well worth a visit on any trip to this city-state.

The National Museum of Singapore
The National Museum of Singapore date back to 1887 and chronicles the history of Singapore by way of its extensive permanent collection. The collection features the Singapore’s 12 national treasures. These priceless artifacts include the Singapore Stone from the 13th century; gold ornaments discovered from Fort Canning Hill in 1928, the last Will of Munshi Abdullah, the Father of Modern Malay Literature and more. The museum’s Four Living Galleries brim with artifacts, costumes, pictures, photographs as they provide a valuable insight to the history and evolution of Singapore. The museum also hosts special exhibitions, talks and events and has a special children’s area called Play@NMS.

ArtScience Museum
Silhouetted against the backdrop of the Marina Bay Sands Complex, the futuristic lotus-like ArtScience Museum is a relatively new addition to Singapore’s Arts Scene. Designed by noted Israeli architect, Moshe Safdie, who was also responsible for the design of the magnificent Marina Bay Sands Complex, the museum hosts travelling exhibits showcasing the amalgamation of the worlds of Science and Art. The museum has 21 galleries and offers a total of 50,000 square feet of exhibit space.

Asian Civilisations Museum
Recently voted the top museum in Singapore, the Asian Civilisations Museum occupies an expansive space beside the Singapore River. The museum showcases pan-Asian cultures and civilizations by way of its numerous Asia-themed exhibits, workshops, seminars and performance arts events. The museum’s permanent collection comprises of more than 1300 artifacts hailing from all regions of the continent.

Singapore Art Museum
The Singapore Art Museum is housed in restored 19th century building located within the city’s Central Business District. The museum has a huge permanent collection of more than 8000 pieces of Southeast-Asian contemporary artworks.

The collection features prints, photographs, sculptures, paintings and drawings, multi-media installations and more. However, due to space constraints only 200 exhibits are on display at the museum at any given time.

The Peranakan Museum
The Peranakan Museum showcases the lives and culture of the Peranakan people also known as the Straits-Chinese people. Native to the Malaysian states of Malacca and Penang and the Straits settlements of Singapore, the Peranakan people can trace their origins to an old-time intermingling of cultures. This phenomenon came about when Chinese and Indian traders intermarried with the local Malay women during the 14th and 15th centuries as they traversed the trade routes. These intermarriages brought about the amalgamation of cultures and gave birth to the Peranakan people. The exhibits on display at the museum offer a valuable insight to Peranakan culture as they showcase Peranakan cuisine, art and architecture, fashion, dance, music and more.

Images of Singapore Live
This award-winning museum is located on the resort island of Sentosa and offers much information about the history of Singapore. The museum catalogs the transformation of Singapore from a sleepy fishing village into a leading global center of economic and financial importance. The displays at the museum provide a glimpse of Singapore’s history down the ages the British colonial era, the Japanese occupation during World War II, Malaysian rule and more.

MINT Museum of Toys
The MINT Museum of Toys plays host to a fascinating collection of toys sourced from over 25 countries and various eras. The exhibits at the museum are of historical and educational value and are guaranteed to entertain visitors of all ages. If you are visiting Singapore with your children, this is one museum you need to visit.