The Walter Roth Museum of Anthropology is the first anthropology museum in the English speaking Caribbean and is located at 61 Main Street, North Cummingsburg. The museum was first opened in 1974 and was named in honor of the late Walter Edmund Roth who was an anthropologist administrator and surgeon.
It is said that the architectural work done on the building was done by John Sharps in 1890 and was then bought by Duncan McRae Hutson a Guyanese barrister-at-law and legislator in 1891. But after his wife passed in 1942 the property was bought by the British Guiana government. When it was bought the building was used as a Teacher’s Training College and later The Attorney General’s Chambers.
In 1976 the National Trust declared the building as a national historic monument and in 1978 was taken over by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Social Development. When it was acquired it was decided that the building be used as a museum and was officially opened to the public in 1982.
The first collection of items ever donated to the museum was by Dr. Dennis Williams a Archaeologist.Some of the items on display include wai wai collections, excavated artifacts from the ten administrative regions, burial urns, petrolyps among others. The museum is opened from Monday to Saturday.