Kaohsiung Museum of History


Kaohsiung Museum of History is a museum located in Yancheng District, Kaohsiung, Taiwan. It is administered by the Kaohsiung City Government.

History

The building of the museum was originally the Kaohsiung City Hall. It was designed by Japanese architect Oono Yonezirou, working with the Shimizu Corporation under the Japanese government, and completed in 1939. After 1945, the city hall was renamed to Kaohsiung Municipal Government. On 18 January 1992, the municipal government moved to Union Office Building and the old building was turned into the Kaohsiung Museum of History which was opened on 25 October 1998.

Architecture

The building's architecture is an example of the Japanese Imperial Crown style. It was built with reinforced concrete for seismic resistance, as Taiwan is prone to earthquakes.
The exterior of the building used the military base color of light green. It overall adopted the main tower with bilaterally symmetrical sub-towers style. The main tower is located on the top of the fourth floor. Both of the main tower and sub-towers at both sides were added with traditional Japanese four sharp corner top and glazed tile roof. They were decorated with Aquarius style spire, plum flowers patterns of raindrops and Japanese chrysanthemum pattern of ribbons. The walls of the building were sculpted with all kinds of decorations and the windows were made with exquisite and ingenuity handicraft.
The interior of the building features the Y-shaped staircases in the luxurious lobby, the aesthetic arched corridors on the sides, the bright high-ceilinged patio and the eastern and western patterns of the grand columns. These decorations symbolize the prestigious ruling power of Japan and the harmonious architectural mixture of the east and the west.

Transportation

The museum is accessible within walking distance North East from Yanchengpu Station of the Kaohsiung MRT.