Bagan Archaeological Museum, Archaeological museum in Old Bagan, Myanmar
The Bagan Archaeological Museum is a three-story octagonal building in Old Bagan that houses extensive collections of artifacts, stone inscriptions, and Buddha statues from the Bagan period. The displays are organized across multiple specialized galleries within the building.
The museum originated in 1904 as a small brick building near Ananda Temple before being relocated to its current site and reopened in 1998. This relocation allowed for a larger building to display artifacts spanning more than a thousand years of Bagan's past.
The Myazedi inscriptions displayed here are written in four ancient languages – Pyu, Mon, Burmese, and Pali – allowing visitors to trace how different scripts developed and coexisted in this region. These texts reveal the multicultural character of old Bagan.
The museum is open daily except on Mondays and public holidays, giving visitors time to explore the multiple galleries at a comfortable pace. Planning your visit in advance helps you make the most of the different sections.
From the museum's rooftop, visitors can enjoy panoramic views of Bagan's surrounding temples and pagodas scattered across the landscape. Bronze statues of King Pyusawhti and five mythical creatures standing at the entrance add local storytelling and mystique to the visit.
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