Brunei Darussalam Maritime Museum

The maritime museum at Kota Batu is built around the wreck of a trading vessel that sank off Brunei in the fifteenth century and was found in 1997, its cargo of Chinese ceramics, glass, ironwork and Thai and Vietnamese wares recovered largely intact. The display sets it in the context of the sultanate's trade at its height and covers Brunei's boatbuilding and river traffic alongside. The wreck is usually referred to as the Brunei Shipwreck and remains one of the more significant finds of its period in Southeast Asian waters.

History

The museum stands in the historic area of Kota Batu, a short walk from the Malay Technology Museum. Building began in December 2006 and was finished in 2008, but delays kept it closed for seven years, and Crown Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah opened it on 23 March 2015; it cost around five million Brunei dollars (Wikipedia, Brunei Darussalam Maritime Museum).

Highlights

• The wreck cargo - Chinese ceramics, glass and Southeast Asian wares recovered intact.
• The 1997 discovery - the finding of a fifteenth-century trading vessel offshore.
• The trade context - the sultanate's reach at the time the ship sank.
• The boatbuilding section - Brunei's own craft and river traffic.

When to go

Year round. The museum keeps set hours and closes on some days, including Friday middays. Air conditioning makes it a good midday stop.

Good to know

The museum is small and an hour or two covers it. Some labelling is in Malay only. Opening hours are restricted and worth confirming.

Nearby

Kota Batu is beside it, and the Malay Technology Museum is nearby.

Key facts