Senegal has opened the country’s long-awaited Museum of Black Civilisations.

First conceived more than half a century ago, the Musée des Civilisations noires’ (MCN) draws inspiration from traditional southern Senegalese homes. A circular structure with a modern glass and wood facade, the museum has capacity for around 18 000 works of art, Reuters reports.

‘Keeping our cultures is what has saved African people from attempts made at making of them soulless people without a history,’ Senegalese President Macky Sall said at the museum’s inauguration. ‘It also stimulates progress.’

Backed by a US$34 million Chinese investment, the MCN has climate and humidity controls in each gallery to ensure the preservation of the artefacts.

The facility boasts a 3 700 m² exhibition space and features  artefacts and artwork from across Africa and the Caribbean, including work by artists from Mali, Burkina Faso, Cuba and Haiti.

18 December 2018
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