International architecture practice Studio Libeskind is developing plans for a new museum in Kenya’s Rift Valley. Ngaren: The Museum of Humankind will be dedicated to the story of humans.

International architecture practice Studio Libeskind is developing plans for a new museum in Kenya’s Rift Valley. Ngaren: The Museum of Humankind will be dedicated to the story of humans.

The paleoanthropologist, Dr Richard Leakey, is driving the project. Ngaren is the culmination of Dr Leakey’s life’s work - whose fossil discoveries have helped reveal how humans evolved. The museum will be the first centre of its kind to present research, discovery and exploration of more than two million years of human history and the origins of our universe from evolution, biodiversity, overpopulation, to war, disease and climate change.

Dr Leakey commissioned Studio Libeskind to create an iconic design that reflects the mission and values of the museum. It is sited on the edge of a cliff overlooking the Rift Valley - the cradle of humankind and where Leakey first discovered the most complete skeleton of early man, Turkana Boy. The design is inspired by the forms of ancient hand axes that were the first tools of early man marking the beginnings of human ingenuity. The monolithic volumes rise like vertical stalactite set against the dramatic landscape of greater Nairobi in Loodariak.

“The museum will be a place for discovery, wonder and contemplation. Through the architecture and exhibitions, Ngaren will anchor all walks of life to Africa: the epicentre of human existence,” says architect Daniel Libeskind.

The museum is scheduled to open in 2024. Studio Libeskind, working with local Kenyan architects, is the lead architect for the design and construction of the museum.