History feels very different when you can stand right in front of it. On 15 October 2026, pupils of Year 4 visited the National Museum of Pakistan (NMP) in Karachi, which has been preserving the nation’s history and culture since it opened in 1950. There, they came face to face with the civilisations, traditions and events that have shaped our country.
Over the course of the visit, pupils explored and learnt about the Indus Valley and Gandhara civilisations, the Mughal dynasty, Islamic heritage and the Pakistan Movement. In the Indus Valley Gallery, they saw sculptures and relics, including the famous King-Priest sculpture, as well as pottery and jewellery. Many of the designs are echoed in Pakistani crafts today, such as ajrak prints. The Gandhara Gallery introduced them to the region’s Buddhist heritage through beautifully carved sculptures showing scenes from the life of the Buddha. In the Mughal Gallery, they discovered a dynasty whose rule left a lasting mark on the region’s art, architecture and culture.
The Qur’an Gallery was another highlight. It displays more than 300 copies of the Holy Qur’an, among them rare handwritten manuscripts decorated with intricate calligraphy and historic scripts. Pupils also looked at the museum’s ancient coin collection, which numbers over 58,000 coins and shows how currency and trade have changed over the centuries. They saw historical records and personal belongings linked to Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the Founder of Pakistan, too.
Elsewhere in the museum, they came across ancient pottery from archaeological sites such as Mehrgarh and Nowshera, alongside artefacts from many different periods of the region’s past. From ancient relics to historical manuscripts, every gallery gave pupils something new to wonder at and talk about.
The trip was a wonderful chance for pupils to look closely, ask questions and see history with their own eyes. It also helped them understand why our cultural treasures matter and why they need to be looked after.
It was a memorable journey through time, and we hope it has sparked a lasting pride in Pakistan’s heritage and a sense that each of us has a part to play in keeping its stories alive for future generations.
