Andaman Bead Museum

Continuing our exploration of Krabi town, we went to explore a truly unique tribute to the Historical backdrop of the region. Today's adventure found us back at the Andaman Cultural Center, this time to check out the second half and arguably more important exhibition housed there, The Andaman Bead Museum.

One of the first things you may notice when you visit the historical Cultural Center in Krabi is their impressive attempts to make everything bright, colorful and kid-friendly. Including setting up gigantic bead structures that double as playground equipment, the Museum curators have also installed a cafe shaped like a large boat, and of course, a 30 foot tall Dinosaur that moves and roars!

The Museum itself is found inside the Cultural Center and to the left, opposite the Andaman Art Museum. Being the middle of a school day, there weren't many other people there, but I doubt they get a regular stream of visitors unless there is a special holiday, like Children's Day.

Unfortunately, this meant that they were saving energy by keeping the aircon off, leaving a humid and sticky atmosphere for us to wade through. But oppressive heat aside, the quaint museum did its best to appear educational and fun at the same time.

The first part of the museum focuses on the history of the silk road trade that cut right through Krabi Province, it created a supply/demand for the handmade beads that the indigenous people of the area wore. Mini dioramas and interactive maps include tidbits of the history of the bead trade, including how they were made, worn, and traded over the years.

The second half of the museum puts on display actual excavated beads, pots, and other ancient artifacts unearthed from that time period. Ancient beads are considered a national treasure, by law, so dig sites are protected and any beads discovered are required to be immediately handed over to governmental authorities.

There have been many reported cases of unauthorized digs and smuggling beads out to trade on the black market where they can fetch a hefty price. There have also been good Samaritan stories of Thai-US residences, upon validating the authenticity of ancient Thai artifacts, returning stockpiles of them to the government.

All in all, the museum is an cute tribute to the once thriving silk road hub that passed through the region. However, it is over before it starts really, not much of a time killer, but as mentioned, it is connected to the Andaman Art Museum as well. So the combination should be more than enough to make it a worthwhile 1-2hour escape. A lot of the interactive activities and games were broken or disabled when we went through, which cut out a lot of the interest for kids, but when operating at it's peak, it is a rather enjoyable, if short-lived, experience.

Since it's free to enter, you can't go wrong really. If you have extra time on your hands and looking for something different to do during the day while you wait for the night markets to open.. The Andaman Bead Museum could be the perfect solution!