A tale of two museums

Thursday, February 23, 2012

“FOR me, the establishment of museums is an indication of the maturity of a cosmopolitan society yearning for more knowledge about their community. It could be a thirst for more understanding about history, environment, artistic and cultural traditions, or connection to nature.”

That statement comes from the prolific pen of Ian Ray Garcia, the handsome editor-in-chief of M, the first travel and lifestyle magazine devoted solely on Mindanao.

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If you happen to visit Davao City, there are two museums you should not miss going: the Museo Dabawenyo and the D’Bone Collectors Museum. Both are located in the heart of the city and are just walking distance away from each other.

Museo Dabawenyo, which displays the history and rich cultural diversity of one of the country’s premier cities, was opened to the public on March 14, 2008, during the 71st founding anniversary. (Trivia: Inside the museum is a life-sized replica of President Manuel L. Quezon signing Davao City’s charter with the legislative proponent, Romualdo Quimpo.

Actually, the museum was the former hall of justice and a warehouse for non-functioning government equipment. Nanay Soling Duterte, a grand matriarch of the city, pushed for it as an official repository of the city’s rich history. Today, the museum is one of the city’s most often-visited destinations of students and foreigners. There is no entrance fee.

Upon entry, you are welcomed by a life-sized artwork and a wall that explains theories on the origin of the word Davao. The hall on the first floor on the right side showcases the ten tribes indigenous to the Davao Region, namely: Uvu-Manuvu, Ata, Tagabawa, Matigsalog, K’lata, Sama, Maranao, Maguindanao, Tausug, and Kalagan.

There is an ethnographic map showing where each tribe is in the city and each corner that showcases every tribe’s history and aspirations as articulated by their respective tribal leaders. An interesting feature is a life-sized diorama of these people dancing, playing their native instruments, and chanting — as if living in harmony amidst diversity.

Next stopover: the Datu Bago Awards, named after controversial figure in Davao history because different people use different lenses in looking at him; some dismiss him as a villain, while others hail him as a hero. In 1969, under the leadership of Mayor Elias B. Lopez, the Datu Bago Award was launched as the highest award to be bestowed on a resident of the city.

The Contemporary Gallery is a collection of classic and modern designs from wood carvings to paintings among many others. The Memorabilia Gallery is a collection of olden day clothes, bills (money), musical notes, porcelains and a lot more. All these items are for the eyes only; touching and taking photos are strictly prohibited.

There’s more to see in the second floor. Here, artworks of the local artists are exhibited. Paintings, sculptures, fashion designs, poems, music and anything that express the beautiful soul and creativity of the true Dabawenyo. Take a closer look at the Filipiniana gown made of water lilies that was recognized on the fashion runways of Paris.

The Nanay Soling Duterte Hall is dedicated to the history of the undivided Davao (which is now composed of Davao del Sur, Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental, and Compostela Valley). For the information of the uninformed, Vicente Duterte – the father of the current vice mayor Rodrigo Duterte – was the last governor of the undivided Davao Province.

One fascinating area is the so-called Peace Room, a commemoration of the historic Philippine hosting of the Tour de Paix (International Peace Tour) by the Museo Dabawenyo in 2008. Today, it serves as library and audio-visual room of the museum.

There is also a room which is used as venue for local artists and artisans as well as local inventors to showcase their works. Businesses, schools, civic organizations, and other groups are welcome to have their exhibits in this room.

Museo Dabawenyo is meters away from the Andres Bonifacio Rotunda and Osmeña Park. It is located along Fr. Selga Street going to Pichon Street. From the San Pedro Cathedral, it takes about five minutes to go to the museum.

The D’Bone Collectors Museum is also a distant few meters away from the Museo Dabawenyo, specifically in Bucana. It is a three-storey building (with blue roof and cone tower) across from the Nograles Park in barangay 76-A.

It may be the only museum that can be found in Mindanao – if not the Philippines. The museum is a realization of the childhood dream of Darrel Blatchley from Idaho. “I have bones and skeletons of animals not only from tropical rainforests but also those coming from the oceans,” says the 32-year-old American who came to the Philippines when he was 15 years old. “I have almost everything – from armadillos to zebras.”

His collections come from the United States, Canada, some parts of Russia, Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines. “The bones come from anywhere and everywhere,” Blatchley informs. The bones and skeletons were collected by Blatchley himself. Some, however, were donated by individuals and some organizations.

“There is so much to learn from these bones,” he said during the museum’s opening last January. With the museum, it gives a glance at how these animals survived.”

Darrell fascination with animals and skeletal remains started when received his first set of bones from his uncle when he was still a kid. “My interest was reinforced when we transferred to Thailand when I was 5. The people in the community where we served were very eager in preserving the skulls and bones of animals.”

Those who get the chance of visiting the museum will be mesmerized to see the place. There are ten sets of fashion mirrors and each set has different bones and skeletons being displayed.

In the first set, you get a glimpse of various skulls, including that of Grizzly bear, which is one of the largest bears that grow up to nine feet tall. “I remember seeing this giant bear as a kid when we were at the Anchorage airport in Alaska,” he recalls. He did see it up close in one of Alaska’s parks.

Another equally attention-grabbing is the skeleton of Cambodian python. “One of the world’s largest snakes, which is just short of the anaconda,” he says. “Our specimen is 21 feet long with a head the size of a pocket book.”

The huge skeleton of sperm whale is the museum’s center of attraction. “There are only four sperm whale skeletons on display in the Philippines and we have two of them,” he says.

The museum is open for public viewing from Mondays to Fridays only. It charges a minimal entrance fee (P40 for children and P50 for adults) “to help cover our costs of recovering and displaying the bones,” Blatchley says.