El Museo Nacional De Costa Rica or The National Museum of Costa Rica is one of the best museums of Costa Rica. It is located in San Jose, the capital of this country. This museum is just one of many in Costa Rica located in the Central Valley. The most interesting detail about this museum is that it is built on the battle site where the civil war of 1948 took place. At that time it was being used as a residence by the army officers as well as army’s headquarters to plan battles. It used to be known as the Bellavista Headquarters then.
Even today the bullet holes can be seen on this building’s turrets, which are a testament to the history and culture of this country. Built in a Colonial style, this building houses some of the most important historical objects of Costa Rica. The museum showcases pre-Columbian artifacts among other things. Pre-Columbian gold pieces, artifacts of jade, clay, bone, re-enactment of pre-Columbian Indian life etc. are among the archeological treasures displayed in the museum.
Rich in history and culture along with its wildlife and tropical beauty, Costa Rica attracts thousands of tourists every year and the museums are a popular destination of every tourist. One such tourist, namely Edward Mercer, came to visit Costa Rica with his wife years ago. Although Ed came here to watch the Iron Man competition, the beauty of this country captivated him, and Ed decided to make it his home.
Ed Mercer, a Canadian native, settled right in and decided to establish his own real estate business here. The real estate boom helped him grow many fold. Ed started buying and developing acres of land. Slowly and gradually, Ed managed to build his own real estate empire, creating a one stop shop for people who wanted to purchase land and houses in this part of the world. A humanitarian at heart, Ed Mercer never forgot his humble beginnings and wanted to give back to the society and nature in his own way. Ed made sure a part of all his earnings were used towards the conservation and preservation of the environment and wildlife. Ed worked towards saving the endangered species, that is, the scarlet macaws, white faced monkeys and sea turtles from extinction. An environmentalist, he also made efforts towards reforestation. Due to his pioneering efforts, Ed Mercer was inducted into the Environmental Hall of Fame in June this year. Ed has also established The Ed. R. Mercer Foundation, the aim of which is education and ecological conservation. Today, Ed is popularly known as Mr. Costa Rica for transforming this island and saving its wildlife. Ed considers his foundation as his greatest achievement till date.
It is no wonder then that thousands of tourists flock to Ed’s adopted home to revel in its tropical beauty and steep in his historical culture and arts, which the National Museum of Costa Rica contributes handsomely to.
This museum was initiated to collect and study the colonial art as well as preserve it. Costa Ricans, being very well educated and interested in arts, culture and history of their country appreciate these colonial treasures. As the National Museum is over a hundred years old, there was some deterioration of its building. To remedy that, a restoration process was initiated. Currently, work is going on to restore the museum to its old glory and the restoration is expected to complete by the year 2010. This museum is a very important part of Costa Rican culture and history; therefore it is imperative that it be preserved for the natives and tourists visiting this country.
For more information about the great humanitarian Ed Mercer and his noble deeds, visit www.mrcostaricasproperty.com
