Situated along Parola Boulevard in Surigao City, the Museo nan Surigao is a Mineral Rock Museum & Research Center for Local Culture. It is also the home of the Parola Travel & Tours, which has a small souvenir shop. Used to be called as the Surigaonon Heritage Center, the Museo nan Surigao houses old Jars, Shells, Sea Creatures, Stones and many others. It is one of the few Museums found in Surigao City. Located just a few meters from the sea, where bancas and pump boats are parked, the Museo nan Surigao is currently managed by the Surigaonon Heritate Research and Studies Center Foundation Inc.
The Surigao Museum is open to the public but the visitors are discouraged to touch most of the items to avoid the build-up of bacteria in the items. You can take all the photos you want but make sure you are not bring any of the items, which are mostly centuries old.
Museo nan Surigao
Also known as the Manuel G. Zamora Museum, the Museo nan Surigao houses a wooden sculpture of Jose Rizal and a replica of the Site of the first Philippine Flag Raising in Mindanao.
The artifacts on display here were excavated by treasure hunters from a pre-Hispanic gravesite in Panhutongan, Placer, Surigao del Norte. The place was a prominent coastal settlement, which appeared in a 17 century map of Fr. Murillo Velar S.J. at a time when both Placer and Bacuag were not yet in the map. After treasure hunters looted the area, the Surigaonon Heritage Center (SHC) in cooperation with the U.P. College of Social Sciences and Philosophy under its Dean, Dr. Leslie E. Bauzon, Philippine National Historical Society (PNHS), Philippine Social Science Council (PSSC), the National Museum and other institutions with funds from Caltex Philippines, Daiwa Foundation, and Toyota Foundation undertook scientific archeological excavation in the area, a work that led to an in dept study and preservation of the place as a protected archeological site.
Most of the items recovered are funerary articles buried with the dead in Panhutongan. They consist of earthen and ceramic plates, bowIs, saucers, cups, and other utensils. Experts have yet to determine their provenance, origin and specific description. They are believed however to be from the Sung and Ming dynasties and may have come from the Indo – Chinese peninsula with whom our pre-hispanic ancestors already established trading contact prior to the arrival of the Spaniards in our country, the Philippines.
How to get there
The Museo nan Sugbo is a known landmark as it is located in the Baywalk, where many locals and tourist spend an afternoon stroll. Just take a Tricycle in the Surigao downtown area and tell him to bring you to the Museum near the seaport or the Parola.
Chicken made of bronze
Epochal Timeline
Internation Collection of Stones
Lisa and Sam at the miniature Volcano
Manuel G Zamora Mineral and Rock Museum
Old Art
Old Rocks
Old stones on display
Painted Artwork
Preserved Sea Creatures
Preserved Shell
Rizal, Bell and Flag Raising Landmark
Rocks and Minerals
Shells at the Museo nan Surigao
Small Items on Display in a Cabinet
Visitors at the Surigao Museum
Wooden Artifacts
Old Jars
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About the author
Mark Anthony Maranga is an Educator-Parent to his 3 Homeschooling Kids. He sells Ice Cream and Balloons in Mandaue City, Cebu. Exploring the Philippines tourist attractions together with his family is his passion; they are learning without borders.
