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Ethnographic museum of Rwanda
Ethnographic Museum Rwanda – Also known as Butare museum, the Ethnographic museum of Rwanda is the main and largest museum in the country. It was offered to Rwanda as a gift from Belgium in 1989 after 25 years of independence. Ethnographic museum is located in Butare which is about 3 hours drive from Kigali the capital of Rwanda. This museum is one of the most fascinating structures around the town, with some of the best ethnological and archeological collections in Rwanda. This is also the best place to learn about the culture, history and the geopolitics of Rwanda.
There are six museums in Rwanda that make up the Institute of National Museums of Rwanda and the ethnographic museum is one of them. The museum was previously called the National Museum of Rwanda. This museum is also known as the site of the murder of Queen Dowager Rosalie Gicanda who was murdered during the Rwanda Genocide.
The Ethnographic Museum was opened by King Baudouin I of Belgium in the late 1980s. It occupies an area of 20 hectares with a spacious compound, beautiful well maintained indigenous vegetation and a traditional craft training center. There are seven exhibition halls that present the very best of interesting items that will help you explore and learn about the culture, traditions and norms of Rwanda.
The first room from the main entrance contains a gallery for exhibitions. It is made up of shelves where you’ll find a range of traditional handcrafts on sale. The second hall is a vast display of the environmental, physical, ecological and geographical history of Rwanda. It also shows the growth of the territories and inhabitants of Rwanda. The third hall displays the items that are used by the people of Rwanda in doing different work such as hunting and gathering, farming and cattle keeping among others. At this point, you get a chance to know how important their work is including the social importance of cattle keeping.
The forth hall displays various items of handcrafts, they are made out of weaving, woodwork and pottery. They include household items such as baskets, mats and many more. The fifth hall is where you’ll get thrilled at the variety of beautiful styles and methods of traditional architecture and how they construct a traditional hut known as kagondo hut. Hall number six displays different traditional games and sports of Rwanda, and a display of costumes and traditional equipments used in traditional dances. The seventh hall is where you can read about the traditional culture, beliefs and customs, history, oral tradition and poetry as well as the supernatural life of the Rwandans. There are knowledgeable guides who will take you through these places to answer any questions that you could have about the displays. There is a side hall used for housing temporary exhibitions and in case you are lucky to find an ongoing exhibition, you would get a chance to purchase different local items.
The Intore dancers and drummers perform from this museum and arranging a performance costs RFr50,000.
The Ethnographic Museum Rwanda opens daily from 08:00am to 06:00pm. It closes on 7th April and on Umuganda days (the last saturady of the month) from 11:00am to 06:00pm.
Getting there
The Ethnographic Museum is found in Butare which is located in Huye district. A number of buses operate from Kigali to Huye district daily. It takes about 4 hours to from Kigali to Butare by road.
Other options of museums in Rwanda include Nyanza-Rwesero art museum, Kandt house museum Kigali, campaign against genocide museum, Nyanza Royal Palace, Rwanda art museum and Rukare ancient history museum among others.
