GALLE NATIONAL MUSEUM

The National Museum of Galle is housed in the former officers' quarters of the Dutch garrison. Built in 1656, it is one of the oldest colonial buildings in the Fort. The building was later used as the billiard room of the new Oriental Hotel, now the exclusive Amangalla. The museum, which opened in 1986, has a collection of artifacts, including those from the Portuguese, Dutch and British periods, to help understand the historical and cultural origins of the Southern Province of Sri Lanka. It is an important educational platform in the region.

The museum has three permanent exhibitions. The first gallery presents the historical fort of Galle and the cultural and social heritage of the region, including traditional masks and turtle shell bracelets and jewellery boxes. One part of the exhibition is devoted to the lace-making industry, which was a specialty of Galle. The second gallery presents objects belonging to the colonial period: old posters of the Dutch East India Company (VOC), weapons and various equipment, furniture and porcelain. A third wing was opened in this beautiful colonnaded building in 2013. It celebrates the Sino-Sri Lankan friendship through a permanent exhibition tracing the long-standing exchanges between the two countries. We learn more about the presence of the Buddhist monk Fa-Hsien (337-422) on the island or that of the admiral Zheng He (1371-1433).