“September 19th was the day when His Majesty King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) bestowed a museum for Thai people for the first time to instill in the people a love of Thai arts and cultures which represent Thai uniqueness on Thai Museum Day.”
Antique artifacts and archaeological sites are valuable items that are essential to the study of Thai history. Besides, they also demonstrate the prosperity of the Thai nation. They deserve to be preserved for descending generations to perceive the precious treasures of the country in which they were born.
In 1859, His Majesty King Mongkut was graciously pleased to build a throne in the Grand Palace and bestowed the name "Prapas Pipitaphan” (meaning “Visiting the museum")upon it so as to use as a venue to display artistic works and antiquities that he had collected; however, it was not open to the public.
In the reign of King Chulalongkorn, King Rama V, he mercifully had aroyal museum erectedat the Concordia Pavilion or Sahathai Samakom Pavillion by calling the museum "Museum" at that time. It was established within the outer part of the Grand Palace to display a variety of artistic works and antiquities for the public to visit for the first time, on the occasion of the 21stanniversary of His Majesty's birthday. The opening ceremony was held on September 19th, 1874. Accordingly, this day is initially considered the museum's birthday for people in Thailand.
Later, in 1995, the date September 19thof every year was announced to be “Thai Museum Day” in remembrance of His Majesty King Chulalongkorn, who perceived the significance of the museum as a venue to instill in Thai people a love of arts and cultural heritage, which demonstrates the uniqueness of Thai nationality.
AU MUSEUM
In every country, there is a place where objects of historical, scientific, artistic and cultural interest are exhibited. World famous museums, like Louvre in France or Sistine Chapel in Vatican City attract large number of visitors from around the world each year. Then, why not AU museum in Thailand?
As a private Catholic university, AU’s main mission is to provide holistic education. It largely relies on the tuition fee collected from the students and on the donations. To think of a creating a separate building for the museum would cost a lot, in terms of its operation and maintenance.
The museum’s 1st floor consists of a big hall and the other two rooms i.e. the Martin de Tours and Fr. Hilar & John rooms. Walking into the hall, ones will see golden stone. The surrounding walls exhibit a number of exotic Thai paintings.
In 2005, the creator of the Suvarnabhumi Campus of AU came across an empty space at the basement of the clock tower. Instead of leaving it as a storage facility, it was converted to a museum for arts and culture. Initially, pieces of art work related with the life of Montfort Brothers of St. Gabriel, such as Annunciation and other historical items were exhibited in this space.
Displayed on the 2nd floor of the museum are several paintings of the Virgin Mary receiving message from the Angle that she would conceive and bear a child through the Holy Spirit.
Now the AU expects to serve to a broader audience with a distinctive mission and capitalizing on its resources. AU Museum is specifically designed with the following goals in mind-
- To create a gallery designed for showing historical works of art.
- To provide a lecture hall or a space designed for students and visitors in mind.
- To prudently use the display areas so that collected items are easily accessible for student projects and as exhibits for visitors.
The 3rd floor hall showcases various types of military ship used in the South: Chakri Naruebet or other royal bark miniatures/models i.e. the Garuda, the Suphannahong etc.
The AU Museum of Art is provided for strengthening the ties among the university, the students and the community. Its main purpose is to enhance its image as the curator of world class exhibits.
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