Many artifacts preserved inside these museums, including an artillery piece developed by Gehendra Samsher Rana, Nepal's very first scientist, are yet to be retrieved from the rubble of the Hanumandhoka Museum, according to the Department of Archeology. The department is yet to compile details of the damage caused to the artifacts housed in museums at Hanumandhoka, Bhaktapur Durbar Square and Chhauni.
Most of the buildings of the museums at Hanumandhoka, Chhauni, Bhaktapur, Patan, Gorkha and Nuwakot were constructed during the Malla era, the early Shah dynasty period and the Rana regime.According to Spokesperson of the Department of Archeology, Ram Bahadur Kunwar, it may take up to five years to restore the damaged museum buildings. "A few of our museums have been severely damaged and it may take up to five years to restore them to their previous state," he said.
According to Saraswoti Singh, chief of Hanumandhoka Museum, 90 percent of the buildings in the museum premises have been damaged by the 7.8 magnitude earthquake of April 25 and recurring aftershocks. A Nepal Army serviceman was killed in the museum and some others were rescued alive.
An Israeli rescue team has warned that the Tribhuwan Museum inside the Hanumandhoka complex has developed cracks and it should not be entered as it's on the verge of collapse. Many buildings within Basantapur Durbar Square are older than a century, with some going back to the time of Prithvi Narayan Shah. A few of them were constructed or renovated during the rule of Janga Bahadur.
The biographical museum at Hanumandhoka houses historical and cultural artifacts and antiques, including weapons and costumes used by various Shah dynasty kings. The museum has preserved the arms used by Prithvi Narayan Shah during the unification of the country and many cultural items that belonged to the late Kings Tribhuwan, Mahendra and Birendra.
According to Mandakini Shrestha, chief of the National Museum at Chhauni, the Pool Ghar there has been severely damaged and a government inspection team has suggested demolishing it. The same building, which is also known as the Currency Museum, preserves the coins and other currency used during different periods. The main building of the museum was constructed by then Prime Minister Bhimsen Thapa. The museum was opened to the public in 1939.
The National Museum preserves various organic and non-organic items of value, including weapons used by during the Nepal-Britain war. Though the quake caused some cracks at the Juddha Ethnic (Jatiya) Museum and the Buddha Art Gallery, the artifacts inside these two museums are safe, said Shrestha.
The Department of Archeology has stored several antique sculptures from the quake-damaged temples and other sites at the National Museum. However the roof of the storage building has been damaged also.
The Department of Building Construction has labeled the Lal Baithak building of Bhaktapur Durbar Square Museum as unfit for reuse. A portion of the building housing metal sculptures has become severely cracked and several of the artifacts are still buried under the debris, informed Aruna Karki, chief of the museum. Portions of the 55-window palace have collapsed and the artifacts inside the building have already been shifted to another building.
The department said it has been difficult to retrieve some of the items trapped in the rubble of the collapsed buildings due to the recurring aftershocks and the proximity of other buildings that are on the verge of collapse.
"We have been consulting archeological engineers and other stakeholders about the renovation and reconstruction of the various archeological sites," said Sampat Ghimire, a senior divisional engineer at the Department of Archeology.
The seven-story palace of the Nuwakot Museum has collapsed and Gorkha Museum has been partially damaged. Though the Patan Durbar Square Museum has been only partially damaged, the authorities have not reopened it as it is awaiting renovation.
According to Prakash Darnal, chief of the Archeological and Historical Archives, the recent quakes have damaged many structures of historical and tourism significance. "Many of the museums were in historical buildings which have either cracked seriously or collapsed, but most of the artifacts are safe," Darnal told Republica.
Related story
Museums in Kathmandu Valley to be closed from Saturday
