The National Museum of Singapore is a public museum dedicated to Singaporean art, culture and history. Located within the country's Civic District at the Downtown Core area, it is the oldest museum in the country, with its history dating back to when it was first established in 1849, starting out as a section of a library at the Singapore Institution as the Raffles Library and Museum. After several relocations over the next few decades, the museum moved to its current permanent site at Stamford