National Heritage Board

1993

National Heritage Board (NHB) was formed with the merger of the National Archives, National Museum and Oral History Department in August 1993.

Friends of the National Museum (FOM) became an affiliated volunteer organisation of NHB.

1994

“Alamkara: 5000 years of India” was staged by the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM) at the old National Museum venue, drawing a record 165,000 people – the largest visitorship recorded for any exhibition held in a museum in Singapore.

The exhibition “Revisited: 175 Years of the Founding of Singapore” was the first time artefacts from the collections of the British Museum and British Library in UK were featured at the Singapore History Museum.

The National Archives of Singapore (NAS) acquired the Lee Hin Ming Collection, the single largest private collection then featuring portraits taken between 1900s and 1940s.

Launch of the National Museum Express (NM Express), a colourfully-painted bus which ferried students from schools in the NHB School Membership Scheme to and from the National Museum.

1995

Launch of the Heritage, NHB’s first corporate newsletter.

NHB directly recruited Education Officers to the Education Unit instead of employing seconded officers from Ministry of Education, indicating the importance of promoting heritage education to schools and the public. Education Unit later evolved into the Education and Outreach Division (EDO).

1996

Official opening of the Singapore Art Museum (SAM), at the former premises of St Joseph's Institution on Bras Basah Road, by Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong on 20 January 1996.

The blockbuster “Masterpieces from the Guggenheim Museum”, featuring 58 masterpieces, attracted 55,000 visitors to SAM. This was then the most popular visual art exhibition in Singapore.

Historic Sites Unit was established on 1 October 1996 to plan, co-ordinate and implement the marking of sites of historical significance in Singapore.

One of the highlights of SHM, “Rumah Baba: Life in a Peranakan House”, was organised in conjunction with the annual Peranakan Fair. It received tremendous response from the public.

The first exhibition of the community series, “The Winding Road Beckons: The Story of the Hokkiens in Singapore”, was organised. This was followed in later years by similar exhibitions on the Jewish, Teochew and other communities.

Founding of Museum Roundtable (MR) which looks at developing a stronger museum-going culture in Singapore. Today, the group has 46 member museums which attract more than 4.3 million visitors annually.

The South East Asia Pacific Audio Visual Archive Association (SEAPAVAA) – the first and only regional association devoted to the promotion of audio visual archiving and professional development of its practitioners – was founded by NAS, together with its counterparts from Australia and six ASEAN members.

NHB’s first Benefactor’s Dinner to show recognition and appreciation for NHB’s significant benefactors, which later became a biannual event.

Launch of the first organised mass heritage trail for the Preservation of Monuments Board (PMB).

1997

Official opening of Asian Civilisations Museum at Armenian Street, previously the old Tao Nan school, by then DPM Brigadier General (NS) Lee Hsien Loong.

“Leonardo da Vinci: Scientist, Inventor, Artist”, a blockbuster exhibition featuring 270 exhibits, was held at SAM and attracted nearly 70,000 visitors.

Museum RoundTable members came together to organise a week of activities to commemorate International Museum Day – this became the forerunner of the MuseumFest.

1998

National Archives of Singapore (NAS) celebrated its 30th anniversary with the official opening of its new premises at Fort Canning Rise. Its facilities include a mini-exhibition entrance foyer, five purpose-built environmentally-controlled repositories, a reference room and a multimedia kiosk.

For the first time, the whalebone which used to be hung within the National Museum was brought back during the exhibition “Changing Images: 111 Years of the National Museum”.

The Singapore Productivity and Standards Board, now SPRING Singapore, awarded NAS with the Standards Council Distinguished Award for developing a set of standards for preservation, microfilming and quality control.

“Origins of Modern Art in France”, a blockbuster at SAM supported by the French Embassy and many French cultural institutions, attracted 70,000 visitors who viewed 70 major works from 30 French museums.

1999

The blockbuster “Eternal Egypt: Treasures from the British Museum”, featuring over 100 Egyptian artefacts, was held at the Asian Civilisations Museum, Armenian Street (ACM, Armenian Street) and attracted over 105,000 people.

The exhibition “Everest: Singapore at the Summit”, officially launched at Singapore History Museum (SHM) by the late President Ong Teng Cheong, was the first time an exhibition was held in Singapore to commemorate a national achievement.

Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew received, on behalf of SAM, Henry Moore’s ‘Moon Head’ – the only Asian museum recipient of the Sara Lee Millennium Gift. This was later featured in the blockbuster “Monet to Moore: The Millennium Gift of Sara Lee Corporation” at Singapore Art Museum (SAM), which also featured works from Picasso, Monet and Gauguin.

The first MuseumFest was held at Ngee Ann City in May 1999, drawing more than 8,000 visitors in one weekend.

NHB officially launched the first permanently marked Heritage Trail in Singapore - the Civic District Trail - on 29 August 1999 as part of NHB's Millennium Event.

“Heritage Through Drama Series”, a collaboration effort between NHB and ACT3, saw its first drama “Home Together” reaching out to more than 30,000 primary school students.

The first ever high-definition three dimensional show “The Singapore Story: Overcoming the Odds” that was first shown at Suntec City in 1998 became a permanent exhibition at SHM.

2000

The Heritage Conservation Centre (HCC) was officially opened on 15 September 2000 by the then Minister for Information and the Arts Mr Lee Yock Suan. The first of its kind in Southeast Asia, the state-of-the-art facility is a custom-built home for the historical treasures of Singapore.

The Singapore Philatelic Museum (SPM) transferred from Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore to become a fully-owned subsidiary of NHB on 1 April 2000.

NHB’s mascots, Heri & Musee, were officially launched to make heritage more appealing to younger Singaporeans.

Singapore Art Museum (SAM) presented the blockbuster “Unmasking Vollard: His Legacy of the Avante-Garde from the Leon Dierx Museum”, the first public presentation of the collection of the foremost 20th century Parisian art promoter and dealer Ambrose Vollard.

An MOU signed between National Archives of Singapore (NAS) and the State Archives Administration of China marked its first formal partnership with an overseas archival institution in Asia. MOUs with ASEAN nations followed.

2001

Singapore Art Museum (SAM) organised Singapore’s first participation in Venice Biennale, probably the most important international exposition of contemporary visual art in the world.

Exquisite decorative arts masterpieces by Carl Faberge, world famous goldsmith and jeweller to the Tsars of Russia, were displayed at SAM in the blockbuster “Fabulous Faberge” – the first time ever in Asia.

The first Heritage Festival “ETHNIC Diversity and Colourful MIX of Cultures”, organised to promote the celebration and sharing of heritage as a living history, saw 150,000 participants.

Singapore Philatelic Museum (SPM) hosted SINGPEX 2002 – the Singapore National Stamp Exhibition - for the first time. Launched by the then Senior Minister of State for Education Mr Peter Chen, it attracted 4,000 visitors over four days.

2002

The Chinatown Heritage Centre, a pilot project done together with the Singapore Tourism Board to showcase the rich heritage of Chinatown was launched. This was later awarded the Best Asean Cultural Preservation Effort Award in the ASEANTA Awards for Excellence 2003.

79 artefacts by Rodin – perhaps the greatest 19th century sculptor – are displayed for the first time in Asia at the blockbuster “Rodin: A Magnificent Obsession” which attracted over 49,000 visitors to SAM.

Reflections at Bukit Chandu (RBC), a World War II Interpretative Centre focusing on the last battle of the Malay Regiment in Singapore, was officially opened on 15 February 2002.

The 4th MuseumFest held in Suntec City on 24 May 2002 saw a record turnout of 180,000.

Treasures of Time - a bi-monthly informative guide to Singapore’s history – was relaunched with a new look and a new format. This was distributed to schools and sold at major bookstores and news-stands to reach a wider audience.

NHB launched the following books: “History of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in Singapore”, “Faith of Our Forefathers: The Religious Monuments of Singapore” and “Singapore’s 100 Historic Places”.

The collection of correspondence from Thailand’s royal family was exhibited in its entirety for the first time in the world at Singapore Philatelic Museum (SPM), an event that was launched by the Ambassador of Thailand to Singapore.

2003

Official opening of Asian Civilisations Museum's (ACM) flagship museum at the newly restored Empress Place building on 1 March 2003. Covers 5,000 years of Asian history and culture from West Asia, South Asia, South-East Asia to East Asia.

The launch of “Heritage on the Move”, a mobile heritage experience housed in a converted bus, allowed NHB to bring Singapore’s heritage to schools as well as community events.

National Archives of Singapore (NAS) achieves ISO 9001:2000 certification for two key operations – Archives Conservation Lab and Image Preservation Lab.

This year’s Heritage Festival, “Seek, Explore, Discover – Roots! Rhythm! Blends!”, drew a record of over 230,000 participants who took part in the week-long activities.

Education & Outreach (EDO) assumed the Psychological Defence portfolio from MITA.

The Singapore History Museum was officially closed for extensive redevelopment and will reopen in 2006.

2004

Rivertales, a new generation museum exhibition, was unveiled by the Singapore History Museum (SHM) in August 2003. This interactive exhibition traces the development of Singapore through tales weaving around the historic Singapore River. The Singapore River Mystery Game, a detective game ala Cluedo provides primary school children and teenagers a fun and innovative experience, while unravelling the historical developments of the Singapore River.

SHM also commissioned local film-maker Roystan Tan to direct a 12-minute short film, The Old Man and The River. A poetic exposition of an elderly man and his close links with the Singapore River, the film was screened at film festivals in Sweden and Finland.

NHB's largest event, Singapore HeritageFest was launched in 2004 to raise awareness and appreciation of our rich and multicultural heritage. The event attracted more than one million participants in July 2007, and is into its fourth year.

2005

The National Heritage Board (NHB) reported its best year ever with a record breaking 822,334 museum visitors from April 2004 to March 2005, a 70% increase over the previous year’s 480,000 visitors.

On 29 January, the board’s second permanently marked walking
Heritage Trail, the Singapore River Trail, was launched by Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports, Mr Chan Soo Sen.

On 29 May, Senior Minister Mr Goh Chok Tong launched NHB’s Singapore Family Tree portal (www.sft.com.sg) at MCYS’ Gen3 Festival.

On 22 November 2005, NHB unveiled its three-year workplan to build a stronger museum-going culture in Singapore.

2006

'Memories at Old Ford Factory' was officially opened by Minister for Defence Mr Teo Chee Hean on 16 February 2006. The heritage centre focuses on Singapore's experience during the Japanese Occupation.

Launch of Singapore's first heritage and museums blog, www.yesterday.sg. yesterday.sg covers a wide range of heritage content to cater to audiences from all walks of life. Ranked 5th museum blog in the world.

NHB organised International Museum Day (IMD), a festival that celebrates museums worldwide on 18 May. Here in Singapore, NHB extended the annual celebration to a fortnight with exciting activities and exhibitions at museums.

NHB together with publisher Editions Didier Millet, published Singapore: The Encyclopedia. One of the most ambitious publishing projects to be undertaken, the Encyclopedia has more than 2,500 entries and features 2,400 photos, maps and illustrations, many of which are published for the first time. First print run sold out in under three weeks.

On 7 December 2006, the refurbished National Museum of Singapore was officially opened by HE S R Nathan, President of the Republic of Singapore after three years of refurbishment. At 120 years old, it is Singapore's oldest museum with the youngest and most innovative soul, and redefines museum experiences through cutting-edge ways of presenting history.

2007

NHB launched four new museum/heritage tour products to make museums and heritage come alive for both tourists and Singaporeans. These tours provide new ways to experience Singapore's vibrant and unique heritage and culture.

NHB created its first children's storybook showcasing museums. Titled Sasha visits the Museums, it featured the Asian Civilisations Museum, Singapore Art Museum, National Museum of Singapore, and Singapore Philatelic Museum, and highlights our national treasures.

2008

The Peranakan Museum opens. Housed in the old Tao Nan school on Armenian Street, this boutique museum focuses on the colourful history of the Peranakans in Singapore, and will feature one of the world's best collections of Peranakan culture.

8Q sam was officially launched by RADM (NS) Lui Tuck Yew, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts, on 15 August 2008. Housed in the former Catholic High School at 8 Queen Street, the museum features the growing contemporary art collection of the Singapore Art Museum.

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