Until recently the historical and cultural emphasis of much in Hong Kong has had a largely British bias. This appealing little museum has always bucked the trend, emphasising the history and culture of the indigenous peoples who have occupied the region over the centuries. 

In it the city's 6,000-year history is traced with a changing selection of exhibits from the museum's large archaeological and ethnographic collections. Highlights include the evocative 19th- and early 20th-century photographs of the city in its pre-high-rise heyday: look out in particular for photographs illustrating some of the catastrophic effects typhoons and landslips have had over the years. 

Other eye-catching exhibits include neolithic tools and utensils, a model sampan, a collection of Chinese costumes and the interior of a typical early Hakka home (the Hakka were a northern Chinese people who migrated south and have lived and farmed on the Kowloon peninsula for centuries).