List of museums and cultural institutions in Indonesia

The first museum in Indonesia seems to have been that built by Rumphius in Ambon, built in 1662. The Batavia Society of Art and Science, established on 24 April 1778, played an important role in research. In 1862 the government built, in the center of New Batavia, what is now the National Museum in Jakarta Old Town. In 1918 Balai Poestaka was created to publish books of literary value in Malay and local languages. This was pioneered by Budi Utomo, whose School for Javanese Doctors is converted into a museum today. There was no longer a market for handicrafts, earthenware and brass, silver and gold objects. A need for money forced people to sell their cultural items on the market. This prompted the building of the Budaya Museum in Yogyakarta in 1935. Some museums suffer from the lack of regular resources, and some have disappeared completely, e.g. the Karo Museum in Berastagi, North Sumatra, set up by Dr Neuman, was abolished during the Japanese occupation (1942–45)