Etymologically, the word “pi-phit-tha-phan” (พิพิธภัณฑ์) or museum in Thai language means “a place for collecting and displaying various objects.” It is a combination of two words: “pi-phit” (พิพิธ), meaning “various,” and “phan” (ภัณฑ์), meaning “objects, utensils, or things.” The purpose of a museum is to be useful for education and offer enjoyment.
In general, a museum is therefore often expected to be a place that collects and gathers various kinds of items—rare things, peculiar objects, artifacts, art objects, and valuable items—and serves as a venue to display such items.
The Thammasat Museum of Anthropology was established and first opened to the public on 5 December 1987, to celebrate the 60th birthday of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej The Great. His Majesty graciously bestowed the name upon the museum and commanded Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn to preside over the opening ceremony on his behalf, which took place in the Academic Research and Services Building at Thammasat University, Rangsit Campus, on Tuesday, 29 March 1988. Later, Her Royal Highness Princess Soamsawali, together with Her Royal Highness Princess Bajrakitiyabha, presided over the cornerstone-laying ceremony for the Museum for His Majesty the King’s Jubilee building on Wednesday, 19 September 1990.
In 2001, the Faculty of Sociology and Anthropology was assigned by Thammasat University to be responsible for collecting artifacts and cultural objects from its own collection as well as additional donations. The faculty then displayed these items at the Thammasat Museum of Anthropology building. The museum’s purpose is to be an institution for education and knowledge dissemination based on the faculty’s expertise and to serve as a place for teaching, practical training, and research.
One of the museum’s key features is the diversity of its collection, which includes over 6,000 items. The collection consists of million-year-old fossils, tools and utensils from ancient societies dating back thousands of years, rare items, peculiar items, inventions, and collectibles from past decades, as well as folk objects and ethnographic materials from various ethnic groups, especially from Southeast Asia.
In 2011, after a major flood, the museum closed for renovation and underwent a physical restructuring. The aim was to make the museum more accessible to all groups of people. This was achieved by constructing a long ramp that crosses an open space, connecting the building’s interior for continuous use. This area also serves as a space for displaying museum objects, linking them to the world outside the museum.
The museum has a mission to display objects for study and research, fostering an understanding of humanity in its various dimensions through the viewing of cultural objects. It aims to promote a deeper understanding of humankind and groups of individuals amidst their diverse cultures and their interactions with the world.
In addition to being a museum for teaching and learning in anthropology and sociology, the Thammasat Museum of Anthropology also functions as a knowledge institution that provides an alternative for lifelong learning, from childhood through retirement, and serves as a new cultural space for Thammasat University, its surrounding communities, and Thai society.
Perceiving Things – Perceiving Us.
The exhibition “Perceiving Things – Perceiving Us” aims to illustrate the deep relationship between humans and objects in various dimensions through the viewing of cultural artifacts. It presents the meaning and importance of certain characteristics while also giving viewers the opportunity to “get to know” the “objects” on display through their own experiences and memories. The “entire” museum building is used as the exhibition space.
1: “The Museum and the King” – The role of a museum has changed with the changing of eras. In Thailand, museums are closely linked to the monarchy. In early days, museums displayed items that were “strange,” “rare,” and “ancient.” Later, museums established themselves as institutions of knowledge, intentionally presenting certain meanings to visitors while perhaps concealing or avoiding others. Today, visitors play a more active role in constructing their own meanings from the displayed objects.
2: “Collections” – Each museum is interested in and places importance on different kinds of “collections.” Displaying a “collection” not only points to the meaning and importance of the “items” themselves, but a closer look can also lead to an understanding of the “collector” and what lies behind the act of “collecting.”
3: “People and Things” – Humans understand “objects” through their own experiences and memories. The photographs and the exhibition along the ramp that connects to the “collection repository” on the second floor of the museum reflect the endless meaning and relationship that individuals have with certain objects.
4: “Memory of a Museum”- If a museum’s primary duty is to preserve objects from the past for study, then each museum is also likely to have a past of its own that needs to be preserved.
“Flood Stain from 2011,” which “exhibits” on the exterior wall of the museum, demonstrates the interaction between the museum building’s past and memory and the Thai society.
We invite you to step into the world of “objects” to understand “people” better.