National Museum of Singapore

Original Building

Building, 1887

The front block of the museum building dates back to 1887. It features an elegant neo-Palladian design, a European style of architecture characterised by a highly symmetrical façade and the use of pediments above windows.

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Modern colony banner resized

Modern Colony

Ongoing
Level 2,
Modern Colony Gallery
Daily from 10am – 7pm. Last admission at 6.30pm.
Free admission for Singaporeans, Permanent Residents and visitors aged 6 years and below
Set in a 1920s black-and-white bungalow, this gallery showcases the cosmopolitan nature of Singapore as a British Crown colony in the 1920s and 1930s.
growing up
With more educational opportunities for girls and the arrival of female immigrants from China in the 1920s, women began to occupy more visible public roles in a previously patriarchal society. Some of these women later made important contributions in various women’s causes, such as education and charity, which helped to enhance the welfare of women at that time.

Through an array of personal belongings ranging from richly embroidered cheongsams, intricately crafted shoes to simple personal trinkets, discover how both the affluent Straits-born and migrant Chinese fought to express their modern identities and the challenges they faced in working out their roles.

Family Time

Visit our permanent galleries with your little ones and play spot-the-artefact! Our colourful Early Learning Resources introduce pre-schoolers to our artefacts according to the themes of Numbers, Colours, and ABCs. Available at $8 per set from the Museum Label shop. For more children's activity booklets, click here.

Museum guide

Download our museum guide (English, Chinese, Bahasa Melayu, Tamil) to find out about the many treasures in our various galleries. In this guide, you will also find the floor plan for easier navigation. Enjoy your visit!