The National
Museum of Pakistan is located in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. The
National Museum of Pakistan was established in Frere Hall on 17 April
1950, replacing the defunct Victoria
Museum. Frere Hall itself was built in 1865 as a tribute to Sir Bartle
Frere, a Commissioner of Sind during the 19th century. Once the
Museum was inaugurated then the Government of Pakistan deemed it wise
to constitute an Advisory Council in 1950 with a primary duty to counsel the
Museum on the issues of enriching its collection through new acquisitions and
purchase of antiquities and works of Arts. The Museum was shifted to the
present premises in 1970.
The basic objective of establishing the National
Museum was to collect, preserve, study, and exhibit the records of the cultural
history of Pakistan and to promote a learned insight into the
personality of its people. The Museum has a collection of 58,000 old
coins, and hundreds of well-preserved sculptures. Some 70,000 publications,
books and other reading material of the Archeology and Museums Department were
also shifted to the National Museum so that general public could see them.
Every year National Museum holds around a dozen exhibitions on National Days
and other occasions.
