Goes to the historical Museums

Yesterday I went to the historical museums, I went together with my community ( Bandung’s Devotee Community = Komunitas Pencinta Bandung ).It was more like a tour of knowing the histories, because we were visiting 4 museums and 1 residence of the governor ( Gedung Sate ). The museums that we were visited : Museum of the Asian-African Conference ( Museum Konferensi Asia Afrika ), Museum Mandala Wangsit, Museum of Geology, and Museum Post of Indonesia ( Museum Pos ). These museums were storing amazing histories that so influential to the country and preserving the historical documents that could be the substances of extracurricular educations for the students. And at the end of the tour we went to the top (uppermost) building of Gedung Sate. It could be gratified us because not everybody permitted to entering that uppermost building.

We were starting our tour to the museums by gathering on the spot of 0 kilometer at 08:30am when the weather was bright and clear.

My community has already settled and put everything in order about this visiting with the manager of the museums. In each museum they will prepare a guide for each group of us. We were divided into 5 groups, each group consist of around 20 peoples, and each group leave in every 15-20 minutes. We were walking in a march to the museums, passing by hilariously the streets.

Museum of the Asian-African Conference

The Asian-African conference which held in Bandung on April 18-24 1955, has attained a great success. As well in unify the attitude and arrange the important orientations of co-operation between the nations of Asia-Africa, as well as involved actively to support creating the orderliness and peace in the world. This conference has giving birth to an agreement which called “Dasa Sila Bandung” that become a compass for the colonized nations in the world struggling to obtaining their liberty, and then also become the basic principles for the nations to improve the peacefulness and co-operations in the world. The success of this conference wasn’t only appeared on that time period, but also visible on the time afterwards. Until the spirit and enthusiasm of this conference becoming one of important elements that determine the history ways of the world.

In a frame of conserving the event and moment of this conference, it is very important and appropriate if the Asian-African conference within its events, problems and the influences that covered on it being eternalize into a museum in a place where the conference has taken place, in “Gedung Merdeka” in the city of Bandung. The city that being trusted as a capital and source of inspiration for the nations in Asia and Africa.

Museum of the Asian-African conference was legitimately establish by Soeharto the president of Indonesia on April 24^th 1980, as a summit commemoration of 25 years the Asian-African conference.

Museum Mandala Wangsit Siliwangi

This museum is a historical museum. About the Army and the struggling of West Java society opposing the colonizer. In this museum stored all sorts of things and weapons that used in battles and struggles in the past. The collections of this museum consist of many things and equipments which used by the troops of Siliwangi. From the primitive weapons such as spears, arrows, keris, kujang, Molotov bombs until the modern weapons such as panzer, artillery pieces, cannon, riffles, guns and many more.

The name of Siliwangi was taken from a King and founder figure of Pajajaran’s Kingdom, He was wise, prudent and heroic in command. He also had a huge authority. While the meaning of Mandala Wangsit means a place to preserve the trusteeship, mandate, or advices from the warriors and heroes in the past to the upcoming generations through the things that they were left.

The entrance or access to the museum located on the building’s rear. The building of this museum is possessing an architecture style of late romanticism, was built in the year 1910-1915 on the period of Dutch colonization as a residence of Dutch officers. After the liberty has taken over by the troops of Siliwangi, this building was used as a headquarter of Siliwangi military in the year 1949-1950.

On May 23^rd 1966 this building within its history witness was legitimately settled as “Museum Mandala Wangsit Siliwangi” by Panglima Divisi Siliwangi the 8^th Kolonel Ibrahim Adjie.

Museum of Geology

This museum is located on Diponegoro street 57, Bandung 40122. Officially opened on 16 May 1929, this museum which was once a laboratory stores various stones, minerals, meteorites, fossils, and other artifacts collected since the 1850.

Its prominent collection includes a Homo Erectus fossil, the ancient elephant ( mammoth ) Stegodon Trigonocephalus, and a replica of the largest and fiercest carnivorous dinosaur “Tyrannosaurus Rex”. Visitors can also learn how the earth was formed, how life developed, as well as Indonesia’s geological phenomena and their relations to human life. Furthermore, the museum also performs various exhibitions, trainings, and researches.

Along with the progress of technologies this museum has hand over many contribution, benefit and function as :

- An educational place outside of school which informing many things about earth and its preservation effort.

- A place where peoples can make early studies before arranging a direct research to the field. Where this museum as the information center of geological science and geodesy.

- An interesting object of geological-tour.