Museum

Today collections of the National Museum of Colombia - fruit of anthropological research , donations and acquisitions, amounted to more than 20 thousand pieces , symbol of the history and heritage (vestiges of the first settlers and material culture of pre-Hispanic societies objects of the present indigenous and Afro-Colombian ethnography , testimonies of different periods of national history and works of artistic value ranging from colonial to art ' first modern as Fernando Botero , Alejandro Obregón , Guillermo Wiedemann , Juan Antonio Roda , Eduardo Ramírez Villamizar and Edgar Negret Enrique Grau ) .

The Museum offers visitors 17 permanent exhibition halls , in which are exhibited around 2,500 objects , a temporary exhibition schedule has allowed Colombians to get in touch with important examples of history, art and national and international archeology , and a varied academic and cultural programming including lectures , concerts , theater and dance performances , videos and Annual Lecture History ' Ernesto Restrepo Tirado ' , held continuously for more than 10 years .

It has also developed an ongoing program of international exhibitions , among which are: large format Sorolla , Eugène Boudin, Henry Moore , Picasso in Bogota , Masterpieces of European painting . Rau Collection , Rembrandt , Egypt : the passage to eternity, The Terracotta Warriors , an army immortal , and Sipan , the last treasure of America. These samples have received a massive response from the public , thanks to a pricing policy which allows to reach all audiences .

On the other hand , publications gathered the wealth of the collections and the memories it referred to academic meetings . Furthermore, the development of new technologies such as website, with tours and virtual exhibitions , creates new and contemporary ways of interacting with the public.

Today the Museum is working on implementing the 2001-2010 Strategic Plan , a roadmap to ten years , which routes all human and financial resources in three major areas : construction of multiple narratives of the history of cultural processes in Colombia , public development and strengthening of the country's museums .

History

Founded by Act of the first Congress of the Republic on July 28, 1823 , the National Museum of Colombia is the oldest museum in the country and one of the oldest in America. For nearly two centuries has been devoted to the preservation and dissemination of evidence representative of the cultural values ​​of the nation.

It opened its doors to the public on July 4, 1824 , when Vice President , General Francisco de Paula Santander was declared officially created . The National Museum was initially installed in the Botany House , which housed the natural history collection gathered by José Celestino Mutis and watching their disciples , with the passage of time these pieces were added others of archaeological , historical and artistic .

Throughout its history, the National Museum of Colombia has held various offices . From its founding until 1842 occupied the old house - now defunct - Botany , in 1845-1913 , the building of the Classroom- current - Colonial Art Museum , from 1913 to 1922, the Passage Rufino Cuervo - today - gone ; , 1922 to 1944 , the building Pedro A. Bank Lopez , now the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development , and from 1948 to date , the facilities of the former Central Penitentiary of Cundinamarca, known as " Panopticon " .

The Penitentiary , designed by architect Thomas Reed builder in the 1850s and built from October 1, 1874 , was the country's largest prison for nearly 72 years . However, in 1946 the prisoners were transferred to the new prison Pillory and the government allocated the building to house the National Museum .
Restored and proper under the direction of architects Manuel de Vengoechea and Hernando Vargas Rubiano , was inaugurated as the seat of the National Museum May 2, 1948 . Since the building meets architectural and historical values ​​of such beauty and strength , the government declared a National Monument on August 11, 1975 .

Between 1989 and 2001, advanced the Draft Comprehensive Building Restoration , which ended the first half of 2001 and was officially opened on July 28 with the opening of all the exhibition halls of the Museum.

Currently , the National Museum of Colombia , under the Ministry of Culture, is responsible for the management, conservation and dissemination of the collections that make up the museum .