Museums in West Jakarta

Jakarta is such an interesting city and a great place to explore. Not only does the city have a great nightlife and restorans, it also has beautifully constructed and historical buildings scattered around the entire metropolis. It also has some of the finest museums on the island of Java.

Puppet Museum

Formerly the building was the museum of Old Batavia and dates back to 1912. This museum houses, by far, the greatest collection of wayang in Java and also those wayang from other countries such as Malaysia, China, India and Cambodia.

Jl. Pintu Besar Utara No. 27, West Jakarta
(Tel. 6929560),
Open: Tuesday to Thursday, Sunday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.,
Friday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Jakarta Museum of History

The museum is actually located in the 17thC town hall and basically houses the history of Jakarta from the Stone Age to the present day. The second level is by far the best of the two.

Taman Fatahillah, West Jakarta
(Tel. 6929101),
Open: Tuesday to Friday, Sunday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Fine Arts and Ceramics Museum

Houses works of contemporary artists such as Raden Saleh and Affandi. There is a special section in the museum that houses Chinese ceramics and Majapahit terracotta.

Jl. Taman Fatahillah No. 2, West Jakarta
(Tel. 6907062),
Open: Tuesday to Sunday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Textile Museum

This museum is located in a large Dutch villa and houses over three hundred indigenous textiles from around the archipelago. There are exhibits that give clear explanations of the batik-making process and their patters. Of particular interest is the rattan armour from Papua.

Jl. K.S Tubun No. 4, West Jakarta
(Tel. 5606613),
Open: Tuesday to Sunday (except Friday), 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Friday, 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.