Formally known as the Sultans Palace because it housed the Throne of the Al-Busaid Dynasty, this two storeyed palace was after the 1964 Revolution, used by the government of the day, for official gatherings and was out of bounds to the public.
Historians from the Islands have for years tried to persuade the government to convert the palace into a museum, for the benefit of history and the people of Zanzibar. Success came in 1994, when President Salmin Amour finally gave his consent.
The Palace Museum is located on the east boundary of the Stone Town, very near to the sea. I will now give you the opportunity to go back into time and spend some time in building that once housed the throne to Zanzibar's Omani heritage.
As you approach the palace walls, you will be enchanted by the beauty of the what appears to be a rather simple looking white building. But alas, do not be fooled by this exterior appearance. The rich interior decor is what is truly expected of any palace.
Unfortunately not all of the last Sultan's possessions are in the palace as
some have mysteriously disappeared without trace! ( sadly, this took place over
the years before the palace was converted into a museum).
As you go through the great arab door into the palace, to your left is a large "Baraza room" and to the right is a room that houses the museum's shop and also the ticket collector's stand.
As you walk further in, the next room on the right contains a vast display of
some of Zanzibar's trading commodities of the early nineteenth century. These
include cloves, tortoise shells and ivory. This room also holds evidence of
commerial and diplomatic treaties(from the ninteenth century) between Zanzibar
and the western world.
Another interesting display is a model of a whaling ship - The Charles W. Morgan(from New Bedford, USA.) which used to come to the islands to collect fresh supplies of food and water during their whaling expeditions.
You will also come across a brass decorated embroided saddle - a gift to the
Sultan of Zanzibar from the Sherif of Mecca.
As you climb the wide wooden stairs to the first floor, you will see some of the
Sultans of Zanzibar staring at you........no don't worry, they are not ghosts
but merely almost life-size potraits of Zanzibar's Omani Sultans!
The first floor contains all the ceremonial halls. It has a State Room and a
Banquet hall (were the sultan hosted his 'Idd barazas') expanded in the 1930s to
accomodate more people.
To get to the Baraza Hall, you have to walk past a long balcony facing the sea.
I am sure the attractiveness of the view from this long balcony, will make you pause and appreaciate it! If you flew into Zanzibar, then what you will see on your right is the Port of Zanzibar.
The most important attraction on this floor, is the room devoted solely to the
life of Princess Seyyida Salme,
Zanzibar's most documented Princess!!
This room has been decorated like a typical arab bedroom. The room has pictures
of the beautiful princess, some traditional arab gowns and a hand written script
of the Holy Quran.
Climbing the intricately carved, narrow, wooden stairway that leads to the
second floor, where the Sultans lived their lives away from the public - their
personal homes!
This floor houses the Sultan's old and new bedroom, the later been built
sometime in the 1930s, a dressing room, two sitting rooms for the Sultan and his
Sultana and a dining room......and that brings us to the end of our tour!
So are you intrigued?......if you are, then you know what to do when you are in Zanzibar. The tour would consume an hour of your precious time, but you can always shorten or lenghten it to satisfy your own curiousity!
So if you are planning to visit the museum, here are the opening hours and contact details.
OPENING HOURS:
Tuesdays to Thursdays : 9.00 a.m. to 6.00 p.m.
Sundays and on some Public Holidays : 9.00 a.m. to 3.00 p.m.
Mondays and on most Public Holidays : CLOSED
For more definitive details you can write or call the museum at:
THE PALACE MUSEUM
P.O.BOX 116
Zanzibar
Tanzania
Tel: +255 24 2231158/2231159
Fax: +255 24 2232337/2231822
