[ Act No. 3477, December 07, 1928 ]

AN ACT CREATING THE NATIONAL MUSEUM OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: PROVIDING FOR ITS POWERS, FUNCTIONS AND PERSONNEL; PROVIDING FOR FUNDS FOR ITS ORGANIZATION AND OPERATION; CHANGING THE NAME OF THE PHILIPPINE LIBRARY AND MUSEUM TO NATIONAL LIBRARY, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Legislature assembled and by the authority of the same:

SECTION 1. There is hereby created under the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources an office to be known as the National Museum of the Philippine Islands.

SEC. 2. The National Museum of the Philippine Islands shall have one chief to be known as the Director of the National Museum of the Philippine Islands who shall possess the powers conferred generally upon bureau chiefs and who shall be paid an annual salary of six thousand pesos.

SEC. 3. The National Museum shall acquire, organize, preserve, administer, and increase, as the resources of the Treasury may allow, a museum containing pictures, paintings, sculptures, portraits, photographs, maps, geographical charts, and all objects which, by reason of their archeological, artistic, scientific, or commemorative value should be permanently preserved as a memento of, and out of veneration for, the great men of the country, as a testimony of the national history and culture, or for the benefit of culture in general, and is authorized to receive and accept devices, bequests, and other gifts, loans or beneficial transfers of property, money or other objects appropriate to the use of the institution or contributory to the exercise of its proper functions.

SEC. 4. The Governor-General, upon the recommendation of the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources, shall have authority to direct that pictures, paintings, photographs, maps and all objects of artistic, historical or scientific value of any kind, of any bureau, office or dependency of the Government which are not absolutely necessary for the work and current official use of the office, bureau or dependency concerned, shall be transferred upon proper inventory, to the National Museum to be preserved and administered by it. The Philippine Museum Division  of the Philippine Library and Museum, with its personnel, of equipment and museum collections and specimens of every description are hereby transferred to the National Museum.

SEC. 5. In order to carry out the purposes of this Act, from the date of its approval, and during the year nineteen hundred and twenty-nine, there is hereby appropriated, out of any funds in the Insular Treasury, not otherwise appropriated, the sum of thirty thousand pesos, or so much thereof as may be necessary: Provided, That with the approval of the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources there shall be charged against said sum the purchase of necessary furniture and office equipment and other sundry expenses and the acquisition of museum specimens.

SEC. 6. The Philippine Library and Museum shall be known as the National Library and its chief and assistant chief shall be known respectively as the Director of the National Library and Assistant Director of the National Library.

SEC. 7. Sections one thousand six hundred eighty-eight, one thousand six hundred eighty-nine, one thousand six hundred ninety, and one thousand six hundred ninety-one of the Administrative Code and all Acts or parts of Acts inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby amended or repealed accordingly.

SEC. 8. This Act shall take effect on its approval.

Approved, December 7, 1928.

Source: Supreme Court E-Library