Etpison Museum

The Etpison Museum in Koror was founded on the private collection of Mandy Thijssen-Etpison and holds Palauan and Micronesian material: storyboards, money beads, turtleshell trays, canoe models, textiles and a photographic collection covering the German and Japanese periods. The strength of it is that much of the material is regional rather than Palauan alone, which few collections attempt. The museum opened in 1999 and is named after Ngiratkel Etpison, a former president of Palau. It also runs a shop selling work by Palauan carvers and weavers.

History

The museum opened in August 1999 on land donated by former President Ngiratkel Etpison, in a building designed and built by his children Shallum and Mandy Etpison; Mandy Etpison is its director and curator, and it was renovated with new displays in 2014 (Wikipedia, Etpison Museum).

What you'll find

• The Palauan money beads - the traditional valuables central to Palauan exchange.
• The storyboards - the carved narrative panels the country is known for.
• The regional material - objects from across Micronesia rather than Palau alone.
• The photographic collection - images from the German and Japanese periods.

When to go

Year round; the museum is indoors. It keeps set hours and closes on some days. Rainy days fill it.

Practical notes

It is a private museum and the entry fee reflects that. It is small and an hour or two covers it. Some labelling is limited.

Nearby

Koror is around it, and the Belau National Museum is nearby.

Key facts