Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Galleries
Spread over four levels, the museum has 12 permanent galleries and two galleries for spe-
cial exhibitions. Start on the 3rd floor in the
Architecture Gallery
, which has scale models of
important Islamic buildings, including the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca. There's also a re-
creation of a mosque interior. On the same floor in the
Quran and Manuscripts Gallery
look for
the 19th-century Qurans from Malaysia's east coast decorated in red, gold and black, as
well as a full
kiswah,
an embroidered door panel from the holy Ka'aba in Mecca. 'It's
very rare to see such an object,' says Adine binti Abdul Ghani, a curator of the museum,
'as it is usually cut into small pieces to be distributed to pilgrims.' Other favourites of Ab-
dul Ghani include the
Ottoman Room
, a magnificent reconstruction of an 1820s decorative
room from Syria;
Chinese calligraphy scrolls
; the weft silk ikat
limar
, a fabric patterned with
Islamic calligraphy and now no longer made as the tradition has died out; and
Uzbek pectoral
plates
.
Restaurant & Gift Shop
The museum has a good Middle Eastern restaurant (set lunch RM43, Friday buffet RM28)
and one of KL's best museum gift shops.
