Necessity of university museums in Bangladesh

Lt. Col. Mohammad Anisuzzaman, PhD, AEC :

Universities are key to facilitating humans ‘to reason well in all matters (Newman 1852)’ and creating educated people with cultivated intellect, dispassionate minds and refined tastes who act with class and respect in their lives.

Universities serve as centers for both education and research. They have accrued vast collections from different sources. Many of the collections have grown into museums.

The range of these collections seems endless. Some focus on specific subjects like medicine whereas others are broader, covering many topics and some showcase history. All collections share key goals. They protect important knowledge and culture, allowing for research. This research leads to new ideas about life, nature and art.

Museums are readily available with huge resources of history and culture. Also, museums act as educational and research hubs, fostering understanding and connection across generations.

Such a tie between universities and museums conceives the idea of a university museum. A university museum is owned and run by a university and dedicated to facilitating teaching and research and focusing on collections related to the university’s academic disciplines and cultural heritage.

The idea of a university museum is not a new concept at all; rather it has its roots in the global perspective. The origin of it can be traced back to the cabinets of curiosities, collected by universities and wealthy travelers, especially during the Renaissance.

Museums began as cabinets of curiosities. Wealthy travelers and universities collected odd items. This was common during the Renaissance. Founded in 1683, the Ashmolean Museum, thought to be the first modern university collection, is at Oxford University.

This museum grew from the university’s art collection. Now, Oxford University has four museums such as the Ashmolean, Pitt Rivers, Natural History and History of Science museums.

Cambridge University’s Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology holds vast collections. Founded in 1884, it has two million years of human history.

It also holds one million artifacts with great stories. The University of Cambridge Museums includes eight museums and the Botanic Garden. Harvard University has seventeen museums and galleries on its campus. These include the Harvard Art Museums and the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture.

Tsinghua University features three museums. These are the History Museum, the Art Museum, and the Science Museum. Peking University has at least three museums. They include the Museum of Biology, the Sackler Museum of Art and Archaeology, and the Museum of PKU History.

The Chittagong University Museum (CUM) stands alone in Bangladesh. It is the first institutional museum in the country. It mixes old ways with school study. Scholars use it to learn about history, art, and buildings. They also study heritage, books, sociology, and people. The museum holds memories of the Liberation War and the July Mass Uprising. Dhaka University’s Geology Department has a museum.

It honors Shaheed Md. Abdul Muktadir, a war hero who taught there. The museum has many fossils, rocks, and minerals. It also displays models, maps, and charts. Students use it as a lab for science classes.

The university also has the ‘Language Martyr Abul Barkat Memorial Museum and Library.’ It is located at Shaheed Sergeant Zahurul Haq Hall. The DUCSU collection center keeps war history, but not a lot.

Jahangirnagar University has two museums for archaeology students. They include a small museum and a studio. Professor Sufi Mostafizur Rahman helped start several museums. These include the “Bhai Girish Chandra Sen Museum” and the “Buddhist Lotus Temple Site Museum.” The Wari-Bateshwar Citadel Open Air Museum is another.

The “Gangariddhi Museum” is being built now. Rajshahi University has two museums. The Varendra Research Museum is the oldest in Bangladesh. The Shahid Smriti Sangrahasala is the oldest war museum. Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU) has two museums too. They are an agriculture museum and a fish museum.

Founded in 1921 under British rule, Dhaka University greatly shaped Bangladesh’s politics and education landscape, being the bastion of the liberation struggle and the country’s independence war.

It was the first university in the country. Likewise, the University of Rajshahi, which began in 1953, is another hub of the history and culture of Bangladesh. It is a key source of learning in northern Bangladesh.

The university helps the area grow through research and working with the community. Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU) began in 1961. It focuses on farm education, research and helping farmers.

It is one of the top agricultural universities in South Asia, with a unique history, culture and contribution to nation-building activities. However, despite having a rich history and culture, most universities in Bangladesh are in want of a university museum, especially a central museum for each of them.

The importance of establishing university museums in Bangladesh is increasingly recognized. University museums can serve as vital resources for education and research, fostering a deeper understanding of cultural heritage and scientific inquiry. By integrating collections with academic programs, university museums can enhance learning experiences for students and promote interdisciplinary collaboration.

Furthermore, they can play a crucial role in preserving and showcasing the rich history and diversity of universities, contributing to both national identity and global scholarship. Moreover, they can serve as platforms for interdisciplinary collaboration, bringing together various fields of study and encouraging innovative approaches to knowledge dissemination. This not only enriches the academic environment but also engages the wider community in cultural appreciation.

University museums are a reality in today’s world, as famous and prolific universities like Oxford University, Cambridge University, Harvard University and Tsinghua University own university museums. University museums are tangible knowledge banks and a vital component of the academic tradition.

They not only promote universities’ tradition, contribution, history and culture, but they also facilitate research to create a research-based society of learned and illuminated minds who work for the development of a country and the enhancement of humans. In addition, the presence of university museums can contribute to the development of tourism and cultural exchange.

(The writer is Instructor , Grade A, Bangladesh Military Academy, Former Principal, Jolshiri Cantonment School and College & Ramu Cantonment Public
School and College).