The opening ceremony of the renovated World Civilization Gallery of Bangladesh National Museum (BNM) was held on October 15 at the Sufia Kamal auditorium of BNM. Cultural Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Noor inaugurated the gallery as chief guest. The other distinguished guests included Lee Yun-young, South Korean Ambassador to Dhaka; Caroline Trautweiler, Chargé d'affaires of Switzerland; Asghar Khosroabadi, acting Cultural Councillor of the embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in Bangladesh; Huang Lei, second secretary of embassy of China in Dhaka.
Dr Ranjit Kumar Biswas, secretary, Ministry of Cultural Affairs delivered the welcome speech at the event.
Jahangir Hussain, keeper of Department of Contemporary Art and World Civilization and Faizul Latif Chowdhury, director general of Bangladesh National Museum were also present at the programme.
A number of country sections of different countries have been enriched through the project of the World Civilization Gallery. Different corners of World Civilization Gallery such as Korea, China, Iran and Switzerland have been rearranged through the project. A multimedia touch screen has added to the section of China. At the Iranian section, a number of books of Shahanama in Bangla and English and many other literary works have also been placed.
Bangladesh National Museum is devoted to archaeology, classical, decorative and contemporary art, history, natural history, ethnography and world civilization. It has splendid collections which range in date from prehistory to the present time. Both in number and uniqueness, the museum is extremely rich in stone, metal and wooden sculptures, in gold, silver and copper coins, in stone inscriptions and copperplates and in terracottas and other artifacts of archaeological interest. The Museum has one of the largest collections of arms and armour in the Indian subcontinent. Quite fascinating are its collections of decorative art, especially of woodwork, metalwork and embroidered quilts. It has items of natural history and ethnographic interest. The museum is noted for its collection of Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin and works of other contemporary artists. The Museum also illustrates the freedom struggle culminating in the liberation of Bangladesh.
Bangladesh National Museum establishes a link between the vanishing past and the vibrant present with a view to ensuring the acquisition and advancement of knowledge for intellectual growth, national pride and awakening, social progress, and international harmony, all in the service of the public and in accordance with professional standards.