The National Museum of Colombia, founded by legislation enacted by the first Congress of the Republic on July 28, 1823, is one of the oldest in the Americas.

It was officially opened on July 4, 1824, by Vice President General Francisco de Paula Santander.

The National Museum was initially installed at the Botanical House, which contained the natural history collection assembled by José Celestino Mutis and maintained by his students. Archeological, historical and artistic pieces were gradually added to the original collection.

The National Museum's collections currently include over 28,000 pieces that were obtained through archeological research, donations and acquisitions. These elements are symbols of our nation's history and cultural heritage and include vestiges of the original inhabitants and cultural artifacts from Pre-Hispanic societies, objects from present-day indigenous and Afro-Colombian ethnography, accounts of diverse periods in this country's history and works of art ranging from the colonial period to such contemporary artists as Fernando Botero and Alejandro Obregón.

Throughout its long history, The National Museum of Colombia has had a number of different locations: from its beginnings in 1823 and until 1842, it was located at the Botanical House, which no longer exists. From 1845 to 1913, it was located in the Las Aulas building, currently the Colonial Art Museum. Another building which has been lost to us, the Pasaje Rufino Cuervo, was home to the Museum from 1913 to 1922.  The Pedro A. López building, current site of the Ministry of Agriculture, housed the Museum from 1922 to 1944. The National Museum was transferred to its present location in 1948, prior to which the building had been the Central Penitentiary of Cundinamarca, also known as the "Panóptico".

The Penitentiary was designed by architect Thomas Reed in the 1850s and construction was begun on October 1, 1874. It was Colombia's most important prison for almost 72 years. The inmates were transferred to the new La Picota prison in 1946 and the Government decided to turn the building over to the National Museum.

The building was restored and adapted by architects Manuel de Vengochea and Hernando Vargas Rubiano, and inaugurated as the site of the National Museum on May 1, 1948. Its architectural and historical value, beauty, and solidity inspired the Government to declare it a national monument on August 11, 1975.

A comprehensive project to restore it as a monument was carried out from 1989 to 2001. A current initiative, undertaken with support from the Office of the President of the Republic, the National Department of Planning, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Culture, the Office of the Governor of Cundinamarca, The Office of the Mayor of Bogotá, and the United Nations Development Program, is aimed at enlarging the Museum's collections while providing the public with all of the services of a great National Museum worthy of the Colombian people.