Quincentennial Museum to open Monday ahead of Battle of Mactan’s 500th anniversary

The Philippine Quincentennial Museum in Museo Sugbo, Cebu City will open on Monday, April 26 to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Lapu-Lapu's victory in the Battle of Mactan.

It will feature the Philippines’ part in the first circumnavigation of the world by Magellan, and the colonization of the islands that followed.

“It will further debunk the idea that we were discovered by Magellan and that our pre-colonial ancestors were savages and barbaric,” reads a press release from the National Quincentennial Committee (NQC).

On April 17, Pres. Rodrigo Duterte declared April 27 as a special working day to celebrate the 500th year of victory at Mactan by virtue of Proclamation No. 1128.

As part of the celebration, simultaneous flag-raising ceremonies will be held throughout the country in public plazas, parks, edifices and schools.

Various landmarks, monuments and edifices across the country will also be illuminated in blue at 6 pm “in celebration of our pre-colonial ancestors and a gesture of hope in the midst of the pandemic.”

A Cebuano cultural night hosted by Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray, meanwhile, will be available for streaming at 6:30 pm through the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) and Radio-Television Malacañang (RTVM).

“Bagani,” the official theme song of the 2021 Quincentennial Commemorations in the Philippines, was released on Friday.

The complete schedule for the April celebration can be viewed through NQC’s Facebook page which will also stream all activities. — Franchesca Viernes/BM, GMA News