10 ‘Hidden’ museums in Nigeria you need to see
I visited a museum for the first time in 1998; to date, I have been in and out of 30, some of them more than once. The National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) manages 40+ museums nationwide, and there is possibly double that number of museums managed by individuals, groups, local and state governments, so you have an idea the variety that exists. However, there are a couple of interesting museums I have visited recently,off the beaten track and which visitors to Nigeria should know about. Read about them below:
1. The CBAAC Museum: I take it that you have heard of FESTAC ’77. What you probably don’t know is that most of the artworks displayed by the 50 participating countries at that epochal event are housed inside the CBAAC (Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilisation) Lagos office on Broad Street:and that includes the larger-than-life sculpture(up to 20 feet tall) Queen Idia, the festival’s iconic logo, which is what you first see at the ground floor (just after the reception). Exhibits in the four galleries include prototypes of traditional architecture, textiles, figurines, and lots more.
2. Odu’a Museum and Hall of Fame: I take it also that you know the Cocoa House (in Ibadan),the first skyscraperin Nigeria (1965). What you probably don’t know is that it is 25 floors high and is home to the Odu’a Hall of Fame and Museum (on the 24th floor)…
