The Top 10 Galleries And Museums In Nigeria

If you are a lover of art or history, local museums are the best places to visit.

Museums In Nigeria

These museums tend to contain artifacts with a rich history behind them, and if Nigeria happens to be your destination for a tour or are already based in the country, visiting some of the museums around you can be pretty informative and thrilling.

Although most times, these museums’ conditions are not impressive, but their content will wow you. So below are ten of the country’s top museums.

Top 10 Galleries And Museums In Nigeria

Benin City National Museum

Located in the city center on King’s Square in Benin City, Nigeria, the Benin City National Museum is the home to artifacts related to the Benin Empire.

There are a large number of Nigeria’s terracotta, bronze figures, and iron cast pieces. It was first located within the Oba’s Palace during the 1940s but was later relocated in the 1970s and became a public center.

The Benin people were famous for their bronze and iron skill, and the Benin City National Museum displays this richly.

Calabar Old Residency Museum

Located in Ekpo Eyo Drive, Duke Town, Calabar, the Calabar Old Residency Museum was shipped into the country in pieces through Morocco.

The building served as headquarters for the British colonial administration. The building itself carries much history and the collection of “ritual terracotta” found in the museum.

Records and relics are carefully preserves and exhibited within the museum; the old Residency is full of historical knowledge of Nigeria in pre-colonial and colonial times.

Esię Museum

In the Igbomina town of Esie, Irepodun LGA, Kwara State, 800 stone images are in Esię Museum. This museum was the first in Nigeria and once housed over one thousand tombstone figures.

Esię Museum was established in 1945, and it is pretty famous for housing human-shaped stone figures.

It is reputed that this museum has the most extensive collection of stone-shaped images in the world.

Museums In Nigeria

Jos Museum

The museum was founded, and built in 1952 by British archaeologist Bernard Fag, and It was the second museum established in Nigeria.

Built in 1952, this museum was originally the country’s national museum.

Located at Jos Museum, PMB 2031, Jos City, Plateau State, Jos museum is notable for its architectural arrangements, wealthy collecting of exquisitely crafted pottery, and Nok Terracotta sculptures.

Kaduna National Museum

This museum was opened in 1975, following the old Northern People’s Congress(NPC) building by the North Central Government.

The Kaduna Museum allows visitors to watch local craftspeople and artisans work in real-time. The museum also contains a substantial collection of archaeological, ethnographic, and crafts exhibits.

Gidan Makama Museum, Kano

This building served as a temporary palace of Kano before Gidan Rumfa was constructed. Located at Emir Palace Rd, Kofar Dan Audi, Kano, the museum has a significant collection of arts, crafts, and historical interest items.

The museum is divided into 11 galleries, each with its center of focus. The building is a 15th-century story building.

Badagry Heritage Museum

Museums In Nigeria: Image Source: Twitter/AfricaFactsZone

This one-story building was built in 1863, and it houses eight galleries.

Located at Lander Rd, Marina, Badagry, Lagos, this museum’s most distinct feature is preserving the transatlantic Slave Trade era’s relics and documentation.

It also showcases the culture and history of the Badagry people.

Nigerian National Museum

Located at Onikan Rd, Ikoyi, Lagos, Nigerian National Museum has a notable Nigerian arts collection. It houses pieces of the starters and carvings and archaeological and ethnographic exhibits.

One worthy of note is a terracotta human head known as the “Jemaa Head,” named after the village it was discovered.

English archaeologist Kenneth Murray founded the museum in 1957, and the museum also showcases the Benin ivories and bronze and the Cycle Of Life exhibit.

Galleries And Museums In Nigeria

Oron Museum

Located in Oron road, Oron Akwa Ibom state, this museum was established in 1958 to accommodate eight hundred known ancestral figures of the Oron people.

The traditional figures are believed to be among the oldest and finest surviving wood cravings in Africa. During the civil war, many of the cravings were looted and the museum destroyed.

It was, however, revived in 1975, and current exhibits recovered wooden figurines.