Overview
Founded on December 4, 1955, the National Museum of History (NMH) is the first national museum established in Taiwan after the wars. The museum’s collection of national treasures and important antiquities, as well as its historical building, and location within the grounds of the Botanical Garden pre-historic remains, together create a diversified cultural asset.
This landmark with red walls and green roof tiles has stood by the lotus pond of the Botanical Garden for many years. The NMH building dates back to the Japanese rule period in Taiwan. Post-war extensions and renovations gradually transformed the museum into the style of Chinese Neo-Classical Style Architecture (also known as the '' Palace Style Architecture.'')
This exhibition tracks the evolution of the NMH building's renovation and examines significant changes and events in the museum's history. It investigates the architectural characteristics and component details that reveal little-known features in the interior of the building, demonstrating the significance of the museum's design as a fusion of the old and the new within a hundred years.

Unit 1 Prolog: Unexpected Discoveries
The National Museum of History was founded in 1955 as the National Museum of Historical Artifacts and Fine Arts. The museum was housed in a two-story Japanese-style wooden building in the Botanical Garden. In 2019, the NMH launched its Restoration and Reuse Project. The construction team discovered unexpected architectural elements and styles in the building's conceal spaces with evidence of previous repairs. To preserve the remnants and features, the project team remained faithful to the protection of historical buildings; they recorded and organized the remnants and features found during the construction process and then compared and verified them one by one using historical documents, images, and videos. The museum decided to modify the renovation designs to preserve and display these materials that witnessed history.

Unit 2 From the Beginning: The Past and Present of NMH’s Architecture
The various styles evident in the building's components are the result of its several stages of remodeling. The building's foundation was the Taisho-era (1912-1926) Guest House built for the Taiwan Industrial Exhibition. In 1916, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Japan’s reign over Taiwan and promote industrial development, the Office of the Governor-General of Taiwan partnered with local societies to arrange its first large-scale fair, the “Taiwan Industrial Exhibition.” The Guest House, which served as the second venue for the fair to house VIPs, was also completed the same year. After the fair, the government converted the two-story wooden building into a commodity exhibition hall and, later, the office of the Engineering Division of the Office of the Governor-General of Taiwan
Following the end of WWII, the ROC government established the Nanhai Academy near the Taipei Botanical Garden. In 1955, the ROC government founded the Museum of Historical Artifacts and Fine Arts in the old Commodity Exhibition Hall, which was later renamed the National Museum of History in 1957. Later, to accommodate the demand for exhibition space, the building underwent extensive exterior renovations and partial reconstruction before becoming the red-walled, green-tiled structure that stands today.

Unit 3 Into the Details: The Aesthetic Vocabulary of NMH's Architecture
The museum has been operated for over 60 years and has faced problems with its aged interior and intermixed circulation. In 2019, the museum's "Restoration and Reuse Project" began. The project strengthened the building structure, improved its functionality, and increased the openness of the spaces; connections with the surrounding environment and neighborhoods were improved to create a museum without walls; and the "Think History" project, which included public participation in the creation of a work of public art, was launched. Moreover, the museum upholds the spirit of sustainable development, not only using eco-friendly methods to repaint walls and refurbish roof tiles but also sparing no effort in giving new lives to the unloaded roof tiles, marble, and other materials during the renovation process through creative design, striving for a balance between historic preservation and renovation.
Through the post-war stages of remodeling, the NMH became an iconic Chinese Neo-Classical Style Architecture, from the outside to the inside, from the top to the bottom, from the entrance courtyard, the roof, and tiles to the colorful paintings, sculptures, door pillars, and columns embedded with unique and abundant cultural connotations. This section introduces the restoration project and architectural features of the NMH in collaboration with architectural specialist Professor Li Chien-lang and his beautiful paintings. It invites the audience to appreciate the close-up architectural details and savor their profound histories.