History is best understood when you can palpate the legacy of our ancestors. If we know how our forefathers lived, what tools they found useful, what clothing they wore and what ceremonies they practiced, it becomes easier to know our cultural heritage and discover who we are.
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To step into the installations of the National Museum is to go back to another era, to live through other times and witness the indelible mark of men and women who left their legacy in their art, politics and everyday life. After passing through the iron gates that mark the barrier of time between past and present, visitors are ready to wander the pathways that demonstrate the rituals, customs and beliefs of the inhabitants of the Costa Rica of times gone by.
To preserve history
The Nati onal Museum of Costa Rica was born to preserve, study and demonstrate the country's historical and cultural patrimony. Its origins date back to May 4, 1887, and this year it celebrates 119 years of existence.
During the decade of the 1880's, Costa Rica participated in various international fairs in Europe that displayed objects from numerous countries. This brought attention to the lack in Costa Rica of a place to shelter artifacts and knowledge about the country's culture. In the beginning, the National Museum was profiled as a center of investigation in the area of Natural Sciences, and was supported mainly by national and international scientists. Later it became known for its advances in Archeology, oriented toward rescuing and investigating pre-Colombian archaeological remains.
Today, the Museum is more alive than ever. Various investigative projects attempt to maintain and update the history of the people of Costa Rica. The diverse collections are periodically brought up to date according to the findings of the scientists in charge.
The objects on exhibit are just a sample of the museum's general collection. The building does not have enough space to display the entire collection at once.
Walking through history
As the propelling entity in the conservation of our national legacy, the National Museum supports various areas of investigation: cultural, archaeological and historical patrimony and biodiversity. Knowledge arising from these investigations is displayed to Museum visitors in creative ways.
The institution's installations display both temporary and permanent exhibits. Visitors can travel on a journey adorned with collections of art and indigenous gold works, religious art and artifacts of key importance in the nation's history.
The first exhibit hall recreates the life of the territory's inhabitants before the arrival of the colonists, an era that began about 10,000 BC. Here, visitors will find artifacts traced back the first humans in the area, organized in nomadic groups with a very simple social structure.
The development of agriculture later led to the formation of more complex social hierarchies and all the intricacies that this implied. The museum exhibit completes its journey through this phase of history with the arrival of the Spaniards in the 16th century and their encounters with the land's original inhabitants.
This first exhibit is complemented by an adjacent exhibit that displays creatively wrought gold pieces crafted by Pre-Columbian goldsmiths. Some of the wrought objects were fashioned for religious and ceremonial purposes, while others served to announce the tribal rank of the person who wore them.
The exhibit of colonial art displays a sampling of religious articles used between the 17th and 18th centuries, which reflect a fascinating union of Catholic and pagan traditions. The exhibit continues with a room that recreates the interior of a typical colonial house, with authentic furniture and decorations from the era.
Then there is the ethnic hall, which explores the racial and cultural composition of today's Costa Ricans. The exhibit uses photographs of different people to demonstrate the rich blend of ethnic backgrounds creating this varied tapestry of unique inhabitants.
Lastly, the history hall introduces visitors to the portraits of the ex-presidents of the Republic, from Juan Mora Fernandez, who was the first Head of State, to Rafael Angel Calderon Fournier, who governed the country from 1990 to 1994.
The museum's temporary exhibits are related to the diverse investigative projects of scientists and researchers. These are visited frequently by elementary and high school students as well as national and international tourists.
Weapons then, culture now
The building that houses Costa Rica's National Museum is located on property that was referred to since last century as Bella Vista, Beautiful View, or Buena Vista, Good View, because of its spectacular view of the city of San Jose.
Construction of the Cuartel Bellavista, or Bellavista Military Barracks, began on the property in 1916. The finished building was used primarily for training soldiers and storing weapons.
The structure's purpose changed on December 1, 1948, when ex-President Jose Figueres Ferrer, in his search for a solid foundation for a democratic republic, abolished Costa Rica's army. The building's new purpose would be to shelter the National Museum.
The Museum moved into the building during the 1950's, and along with the increased space came an expansion of the institution's role in defending, protecting and diffusing knowledge about the country's natural, historical and cultural patrimony.
The building sheltering the Museum has been declared a National Monument, and has become a national symbol of Costa Rica both because it preserves the country's patrimony and because it stands as a reminder of a country that abolished its army in the name of peace and democracy.
The Spheres of Stone
The spheres of stone are the only examples of their kind. They form a part of the most impressive fabricated objects by the pre-Colombian inhabitants that lived on the Pacific coast of southern Costa Rica.
Made more than one thousand years ago, hundreds were produced in a variety of sizes, some as small as only 10 centimeters (about 4 inches), but a great quantity of sizes ranging from 1 meter (about 40 inches) up to a little more than 2 meters (over 6 feet 6 inches). Their almost perfect shape leads to the belief that they were made very specialized artisans and in a specific time period.
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