Within the Bishop Museum, visitors can travel back in time to the historic past of Hawaii. Nearly 2,000 years ago, Tahitian and Polynesian settlers first arrived on Hawaii's coastline. In 1882, the Iolani Palace was constructed for the Hawaiian monarchy. By 1893, the Hawaiian monarchy was overthrown and the royal residence was taken over. Today, visitors can tour the first floor and second floor rooms to learn about how the royal family once lived. At the Bishop Museum, visitors can learn about the way that the Hawaiian Islands have developed from ancestral homelands to a modern economy. With over 3,900 exhibits, visitors can learn the in-depth details of Hawaiian history, archaeology and botany. …show more content…
Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop was the last descendant of Hawaii's Kamehameha royal family and the wife of Charles Bishop. He set up the museum to include heirlooms from the Princess and Hawaiian artifacts. Over the last one hundred years, the museum has expanded to include photographs, documents and artifacts from the many cultures present in the islands.
Before it was a museum, this property was once the home of the Kamehameha School for Boys. Until 1940, the school and the museum continued to share the space. As the museum grew, less space was available for the school. In 1940, the school permanently moved to a larger complex at Kapalama Heights.
The modern Bishop Museum is the largest museum in the state of Hawaii. Due to this, it is one of the top museums for cultural history and natural history in the Pacific region. In addition to cultural collections, it hosts public educational programs, research projects and consulting options. Presently, the Bishop Museum is home to one of the biggest natural history collections in the world. Over the course of the century, the Bishop Museum's scientists have accumulated 25 million items that showcase Hawaii's history and biology.
Cultural Items, Historical Artifacts and Biological Specimens at the