http://www.solentiname.org

Solentiname's Musas Museum

-By Elizabeth Feakins -

Solentiname’s new museum, Musas—visited by more than 200 foreign and national tourists since it opened in 2001—has successfully struck a balance between providing information and entertaining its visitors in a determined attempt to study and appreciate this incredibly rich archipelago. Although much of the information in the museum is quite technical, bird and animal foot trails guide you from one color-coded room to the other, encompassing the ecology, archeology and modern lifestyle of Solentiname.

A variety of maps on the front porch and atrium immediately orient the visitor and emphasize Solentiname as a united collection of islands, each interconnected with the others. The bold mural on the wall, “Vida Silvestre del Archipiélago de Solentiname”, serves as an introduction to the ecological section of the museum and represents not only the types of animals and plants one might see in Solentiname, but also portrays the rich tone and vibrancy that permeates the entire setting. (read article)

Exhibit of Isla Zapote wildlife

Every detail of the museum is a consequence of thoughtful planning, including the balsa wood animals illustrating the diverse wildlife that inhabit the islands. The archipelago’s gifted painters, craftspeople and carpenters all contributed in the wonderful final product—They painted the murals and pictures and carved the numerous animal specimens that animate the museum’s ecological exhibits.

This green-colored section of the museum spills outdoors, as the project managers struggle to preserve the area’s turtle population— The rough outline of a hatchery imitates in green mesh the shape of an overgrown turtle. In the interest of striking that balance between entertainment and education, the museum’s administrators intend to grow various species of Bromeliads along the cover of the hatchery and raise butterflies alongside the turtles. The turtle hatchery being little more than a bunch of eggs in sand, the idea is to include more visually stimulating exhibits. The hatchery has already proven itself successful—out of 40 nests and 700 eggs, only four nests in the first “generation” didn't’t hatch successfully.

The cooperation between the archipelago’s residents and various aid agencies is crucial to determining what projects will best suit and promote Solentiname’s already rich natural resources. The museum reminds visitors that learning from the past can be a practical endeavor for the region. Out back, an arboretum is in its baby stage, not only to serve as a display but also to help understand such problems as rampant cedar growth and the short span of time in which the quickly growing balsa wood is of use to the local artisans. Within the interior porch area, a traditional medicinal garden also grows, each indigenous plant labeled and corresponding to a list of remedies and benefits provided by it.

The museum’s brick-red archeology section displays petroglyphs and various pre-Columbian clay pots found in the archipelago. The islands’ rich cultural past is fabulously represented in this room, depicting the “Cueva del Duende” petroglyphs and explaining the lifestyle of the Guatuzo Indians, which inhabited the islands and the different influences that ruled their ancient world.

The next section of the museum— color-coded in blue— displays the modern Solentiname lifestyle. Again, a mural helps portray the tone of the room, depicting a sort of timeline, with the most ancient customs pictured on the left and increasingly modern events taking place on the right-hand side of the landscape.

Anything but a catalogue of the ancient, the Musas is a museum very much focused on the here-and-now. It stands as a testament of what can be done (and is being done) to enrich and celebrate all that Solentiname has to offer; and it perfectly represents the archipelago’s most wonderful assets: its people, its culture and its ecology. A trip to the Musas is a must when visiting the paradisiacal destination of Solentiname.

Museo Musas is located on the Elvis Chavarría Island on the Solentiname Archipelago and is open every day (except for holidays) from 7:30am to 12:30pm and from 2:30pm to 5:30pm.

If you would like to visit the Musas Museum, acquire more information on it or contribute to its upkeep, you can contact the project coordinators in San Carlos at (505) 283-0095 and in Managua at (505) 249-6176 or check out their website at http://www.manfut.org/museos/solentiname.html

http://www.una.edu.ni/solentiname/

Nicaragua's Best Guide • July-August-September