The Tin Museum of Indonesia
Located on Jalan Ahmad Yani No 179, Pangkalpinang on Bangka Island, the museum occupies the building what was once the house of the Head of Administration of Bangka Tin Mining or Hoofd Administrateur Banka Tin Winning (BTW) during the Dutch colonial era. Established in 1958 and officiated in 1997, the museum is the only Tin Museum in Indonesia and Asia which today is under the management of the Indonesian state enterprise PT Tambang Timah.
Within the Museum, visitors are presented with various collections related to the tin mining industry, including the most traditional. Here you can find a traditional bailer that was used in the 1700’s to retrieve water and tin ores and a unique tool called belincong that was used to mine the tin.
From the Dutch colonial era, the museum showcases tin bar casts and tin bar stamps belonging to the Mijnbow Maatschappij Biliton (GMB)-the brand of the tin bars. There are also several vintage pictures depicting the long history of Dutch tin mining on Bangka and Belitung.
In the museum, visitors are also presented with different types of tin and other geological rocks which are also mined such as quartz crystals. As the icon of the tin mining industry, a locomotive that was once used to pull tin carts is placed in the courtyard of the museum.
Get There
The best way to reach the museum is to rent a car or motorcycle. Car rental services generally comes with a driver. Or for a more practical option you can also take ojek –motorbike taxis-with negotiable prices depending on the distance.
