Students are getting new angle on history
Sirikul Bunnag
The National Museum is taking culture to the masses by sending its mobile unit to schools, department stores and communities.
The bright blue six-wheeler has made about 15 trips since its debut last September.
The unit makes one or two trips a month. Its destinations are mostly schools, department stores and communities around Bangkok, but it has also made a few long-haul trips to Chiang Rai and Ratchaburi.
The right side of the truck features a 42 inch LCD television set which screens short documentaries about museums around the country.
The left side showcases replicas of ancient artifacts. The collection includes Ban Chiang pottery (a genuine piece is on display at Ban Chiang museum in Udon Thani), an ornate double-edged short sword and scabbard (the real one is on show at Sam Phraya museum in Ayutthaya), and a bronze lamp unearthed at Pong Tuek archaeological site in Kanchanaburi's Tha Maka district (Phra Nakhon museum in Bangkok hosts the authentic version).
Rakchanok Kojaranond, a curator attached to the mobile unit, said large replicas, such as a stone inscription, a statue of Ganesh, a Dharmachakra (Wheel of Dhamma) and a Narai lintel, are shown outdoors.
The replicas are designed so blind children can touch and study them.
After attending lectures and video screenings, students take home a guidebook telling them about the replicas on display, 44 museums scattered throughout the country, their main attractions, opening hours, entrance fees and contact telephone numbers.
Mrs Rakchanok said at the end of each show the students take part in activities, such as colouring-in pictures of the artifacts or piecing together jigsaw puzzles.
"It is a great promotion," she said. "In the past, children thought museums were boring and filled with dusty relics, and they would rather go to department stores.
"But most museums have undergone a facelift and now offer exciting activities as well as their exhibits. We need to show children these changes and attract them to our museums."
There is currently one mobile museum unit, funded by proceeds from other projects.
The National Museum Office hopes to get funding for another one in the government's budget for the next fiscal year.
Maneerat Boonyanant, a Mathayom 1 student (seventh grader) at Wat Noi Nai school in Bangkok's Taling Chan district, said: "Museums have never been on my to-do list, as I thought they were boring. But the replicas presented at the mobile unit are beautiful and interesting. Now I want to see the real ones for myself."
Akkarat Khunthongchan, a Mathayom 1 pupil, said the mobile unit is an eye-opener for poorer students who cannot afford a trip for a real museum experience.
"Seeing these replicas is much better than reading about them in a book," he said.
"I may not be able to go to a museum today, but the unit has inspired me to go some time in the future."
Sirilak Cha-aim, a Mathayom 4 student at the school, said: "I learned a lot from the mobile museum, the presentations on all 44 museums, the replica collection and the colouring-in and jigsaw puzzle. When I get home, I will ask my older brother to take me to the National Museum."
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