The prison building
Brick and white.
Psubhashish — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Bernt Rostad — CC BY 2.0 · ironypoisoning — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Psubhashish — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Psubhashish — CC BY-SA 4.0
The Museum of Belize is an art and history museum in Belize City, housed in a former prison of brick and white trim with tidy colonial architecture. It covers the country's history from Maya civilization to the colonial era, making it the best place to understand Belize before heading to its ruins and islands. It was built between 1854 and 1857 as Her Majesty's Prison, when the area was a British colony, replacing a wooden prison nearby. It stayed the Belize City Prison until 1993, when inmates moved to Hattieville. In 2002 it was restored and reopened as a national museum, keeping the character of the building. Exhibits include a timeline on slavery in Belize, slave revolts and communities of escaped slaves, along with Maya artefacts and history over some 3,000 years, including jade pieces. It also shows the history of the prison itself, colonial life, natural history, visual arts and the culture of the nation's many groups, in bright corridors and long galleries. It is under a kilometre in a straight line from Baron Bliss Lighthouse, so both fit a short daytime tour. Read current travel advice before visiting Belize City, use a licensed taxi and keep to well known areas. Check opening times before you go, ask before taking pictures in the galleries and do not touch the displays.
Brick and white.
With jade pieces.
A detailed history.
Gabourel Lane, Fort George, Belize City
Swing Bridge and Central Belize CityThe emblem of Belize City, a small iron bridge over Haulover Creek linking the c6 minutes walk4.1
Baron Bliss LighthouseBaron Bliss Lighthouse is a small white and red tower at the tip of Fort George 10 minutes walk
St. John's CathedralThe Cathedral Church of St. John the Baptist is the oldest Anglican church in Ce14 minutes walkIt was built as one in the 1850s and stayed so until 1993.
Slavery history, Maya artefacts, arts and cultures.