National Museum of Afghanistan Oral Histories
name: label: Creator
content: Esfandiari, Aziz
label: Former owner
content: Masoudi, Omara Khan
place: label: Place
content: Afghanistan
label: Place
content: Kabul (Afghanistan)
topic: label: Topic
content: Museums
label: Topic
content: Museums and community
label: Topic
content: Museums -- Collection management
label: Topic
content: Ethnological museums and collections
creator: label: Creator
content: Esfandiari, Aziz
setName: label: See more items in
content: National Museum of Afghanistan Oral Histories
bioghist: label: Biographical / Historical
content: Mr. Omara Khan Masoudi is the former director of the National Museum of Afghanistan, 2001-2015. 

He was born in 1948 and grew up in Logar Province, Afghanistan. He studied history and geography at Kabul University. After University he taught for four years before joining the staff of the National Museum of Afghanistan, then known as the Kabul Museum, in 1978. He served as head of the prehistoric department and as an exhibition manager before becoming deputy director of the museum in 1998. He briefly stepped away from his duties in 2000 during the Taliban era.  In 2001, after the Taliban's fall, he returned to the Museum as director. 

Mr. Masoudi was honored with a Prince Claus Award for his work in rehabilitating the National Museum of Afghanistan and his role in protecting and preserving Afghanistan's cultural heritage. He was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate by New York University in 2013.
physdesc: label: Extent
content: 0.5 Cubic feet (34 original audio files and 44 pdf files of access copy transcripts, 44.6 gigabytes.)
unitdate: label: Date
content: 2023-2024
dataSource: label: Archival Repository
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives
identifier: label: Identifier
content: FSA.A2024.03
objectType: label: Type
content: Collection descriptions
label: Type
content: Archival materials
scopecontent: label: Content Description
content: This collection consists of 22 oral histories documenting the history of the National Museum of Afghanistan during the career of Mr. Omara Khan Masoudi, director of the museum from 2001 to 2015. 

These interviews cover:  

•	The historical background of the National Museum of Afghanistan and the beginning of Mr. Masoudi's work at the museum.

•	The period marked by the presence of soviet military forces in Afghanistan (1979-1989) and how their presence affected the museum.

•	The circumstances of the National Museum of Afghanistan during and after Soviet withdrawal.

•	The National Museum of Afghanistan's condition during the civil wars of the 1990s.

•	The damage to the National Museum of Afghanistan and its artifacts during the civil wars.

•	Efforts to curb smuggling, as well as Mr. Masoudi's personal background, education, and career.

•	The museum's path during the Taliban's initial rule from 1995 to 2001. 

•	The Taliban's policies and ideological beliefs that affected the National Museum of Afghanistan and archaeological artifacts.

•	The state of the museum during and after the Taliban's fall in 2001. 

•	Recovery and repatriation efforts both locally and abroad, particularly after Mr. Masoudi assumed responsibility in 2001.

•	Events beyond repatriation efforts that occurred under Mr. Masoudi's leadership at the National Museum of Afghanistan.

•	Rehabilitation of the National Museum of Afghanistan after 2002.

•	The effort to create a military museum in Afghanistan, known as the Museum of Jihad and Resistance, as well as other private museums in Afghanistan.

•	Exhibitions of the National Museum of Afghanistan during the tenure of Omara Khan Masoudi as director, 2001-2015.

•	Exhibitions organized outside of Afghanistan.

•	Digitization and documentation of museum artifacts.

•	Preservation and restoration of artifacts and the museum building after 2001 at the National Museum of Afghanistan.

•	Educational programs and outreach to school students, university students, researchers, and museum professionals.

•	The museum's role in cultural diplomacy and public engagement.

•	Government assistance for artifact restoration.

•	Provincial museums in Afghanistan; not only currently in existence, but also planned or proposed museums.

•	The Mes Aynak archaeological site.