New National Museum for Afghanistan

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Published time: September 20, 2012 08:55
Edited time: September 20, 2012 12:57

Afghanistan’s sense of historical identity is to be reborn with the construction of a brand new national museum. The multimillion-dollar project will house artefacts, some of them 2,000 years old.

The Afghan National Museum was destroyed during the devastating civil war that raged in the early 1990s, following the Soviet withdrawal.

The Taliban regime did little to support the ancient culture of Afghanistan and deliberately destroyed thousands of works of art. The regime was criticized for blowing up the 6th Century monumental Bamiyan Buddhas in 1996.

Image from http://www.av62arquitectos.com

­Thirty countries entered a competition sponsored by the US Embassy in Kabul to design the new museum. The winning design, created by Spanish architects from the AV 62 bureau, puts the spotlight on pools, gardens and trees that will surround the new museum.

Image from http://www.av62arquitectos.com

­State-of-the-art security and climate control will keep artefacts safe while on display in the war-torn country.

"They (young Afghans) are thirsting for knowledge about their past and this museum is beginning to address those desires," Director of the Afghanistan Center in Kabul University, Nancy Dupree, told Reuters.

Even though America has reportedly invested $5 million in the project the US ambassador is quoted as saying that the embassy was now seeking to raise more money for the project.