Dar Es Salaam Centre for Architectural Heritage/DARCH
Dar Es Salaam Centre for Architectural Heritage/DARCH
Dar Es Salaam Centre for Architectural Heritage/DARCH (Old Boma, Morogoro Road and Sokoine Drive, Dar Es Salaam) — facing the harbor and adjacent to the City Hall, the Old Boma is one of the city’s oldest buildings. It was built in 1866-67 by Majid bin Said, Sultan of Zanzibar, close to his one-time palace (which no longer exists). The Zanzibari style carved wooden doors, the coral stone walls and the shape of its roof are that building’s distinctive features.
This building became the office of the German colonial authorities until 1916. Afterwards, it was both a police station and prison under British colonialism after 1916, and was an office for the Tanzanian authorities after independence. International non-profit group “Darch Center for Architectural Heritage” saved the building from demolition, with renovations eventually made.
The venue was finally opened to the public in June 2017 (offering a permanent exhibition on the history of Dar es Salaam in Swahili & English). By crossing oral memory and archives stored in Tanzania, Germany and UK, this exhibition traces the city’s history, heritage and architectural evolution, from the Mzizima fishing village to the present-day metropolis. Free admission. Hours: 10:00 am – 1:00 pm (weekdays only), closed on weekends. For more info, visit its website: www.darchtz.org