National Museum unveils new marker, reopens main gates

MANILA, Philippines — The National Museum of the Philippines marked International Museum Day this year with the unveiling of a new marker and the reopening of the museum's main gates.

The new historical marker commemorates the revised foundation date of the National Museum, which the National Historical Commission of the Philippines reviewed and approved in 2022.

The marker — found at the renovated Sentinel of Freedom Monument in Liwasang Rizal —acknowledges an 1887 royal decree establishing the Museo-Biblioteca de Filipinas as the genesis of the first museum-library of national scope, the precursor of the National Museum.

The 11.14-meter-tall monument was built under the initiative of the Department of Tourism and has been part of the museum since 2019.

Coinciding with the marker's unveiling was the reopening of the museum's main gates in Maria Orosa Street which were closed for the past four years.

Guests will have direct access again to the National Museum Complex from Maria Orosa Street and Rizal Park.