When planning to open a history museum, one option is to start from scratch and design a purpose-built building to house your collection. But why do that when you can house your museum in a building that’s seen a fair bit of history itself?
The team behind a newly-opened history museum in Taipei has taken the latter route. The museum tells the story of Taipei against the backdrop of a building that’s witnessed more than a century of change.
The old Mitsui warehouse has sat in Taipei’s Beimen area since 1914. Though it was moved 50 meters from its original site back in 2014, it’s never budged from its place as a fixture in the local landscape.
This building was constructed during a long period of Japanese colonial rule over Taiwan. In its early days, it was used to store goods shipped on Taiwan’s railways. It was designated a “storehouse of memories” in 2018, after it was rebuilt on its current spot, and it finally opened to the public on Saturday.
Memories stored here include those of the industries that powered Taiwan’s economy a century ago: camphor, tea, and wood. These were the very industries that the warehouse’s first owner, Japan’s Mitsui & Co., was involved in around Taiwan. The museum also looks at how Taipei has evolved over generations, and includes a second-floor gallery for special historical exhibitions.