The Minister of Culture, Raymond Araygi, officially inaugurated the basement of the National Museum under the patronage and in the presence of Prime Minister Tammam Salam.

After being closed for over 40 years, the basement of the National Museum reopened following major renovation works carried out since 2014 thanks to a generous contribution from the Italian government.

The basement of the Museum displays 520 objects, including a collection of funerary objects  from prehistory to the Ottoman era discovered in Lebanon during archaeological excavations. Some pieces are displayed for the first time.