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PICTURES OF KENYA NATIONAL MUSEUM

We had planned to go to this museum on the day we spent sightseeing in Nairobi. But Henry suggested going here on the day we came back from the Masai Mara, as we would have only been able to spend less than an hour here. It was a good suggestion!

This museum is vast. It houses the following: Ornithology Gallery (birds), Mammal Gallery, Fish & Reptile Gallery, Geology Gallery, Gallery of Contemporary East African Art, Prehistory Gallery, and the Ethnography Gallery.

This museum is very dry, so it’s essential that you get a guide. They will bring the museum to life, and we weren't bored during the whole two hours! The guides are included in the price of admission. Our guide was just simply fascinating to listen to, and he also asked us many questions to learn more about our American lifestyles. Very cool.

Highlights:
-- “The Origins of Man in Kenya” in the Prehistory Gallery was extremely interesting. We saw a cast of what is believed to be the first human footprints, Homo erectus. They are 1.5 million years old discovered in Laetoli in Tanzania.
-- Joy Adamson’s series of ethnic portraits which show the tremendous diversity of Kenya’s cultures. She was commissioned by the colonial government to paint a male and female portrait of every tribe in Kenya. Many of these cultures have already vanished.
-- The Ethnographic Gallery was excellent with the help of our guide bringing it to life. We saw many old and authentic handicrafts from many cultures, such as the Masai ear stretching devices. Ouch!

To learn more about this museum, click on the following link and then the “Nairobi Galleries” pull down menu at the top of this web site:
www.museums.or.ke.


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Copyright © 2002, Dawn M. Dalton.
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