Brunei Maritime Museum

About this place

The Brunei Darussalam Maritime Museum stands in the historic Kota Batu area of the capital, telling the story of a 500-year-old shipwreck and of old Brunei's ties to sea trade. The Crown Prince opened it on 23 March 2015, though building was finished in 2008, at a cost of about five million Brunei dollars. An oil company found the wreck by accident in 1997, about 32 nautical miles off the coast. The museum shows a selection of some 13,500 objects recovered from the site, mostly foreign ceramics of the 15th and 16th centuries. It also covers Kota Batu's role as a centre of human activity and trade from the 14th to the 17th centuries. It has three galleries, the first being «the Brunei Shipwreck», the heart of the museum, with rows of blue and white plates and bowls. The second, «Kota Batu as a Trading Centre», shows large models of foreign and local ships under sail, along with traditional boats and tools. The third holds temporary shows, and low light picks out objects against dark backgrounds. It is a short walk from the Malay Technology Museum, so combine them. According to the tourism site it opens from 9:00 to 17:00 most days, to 16:30 on Sunday, and closes on Friday. It is air-conditioned, so it suits the midday heat. Ask before taking pictures, and do not touch the displays. A taxi or private car from the city centre is the easiest way there.