Inside of the National Museum of Australia are exhibits of the country’s social history dating back to the arrival of Aboriginal Australians about 40,000 to 60,000 years ago. This makes the indigenous people one of the world’s oldest continuous cultures. You will also learn how Europeans discovered Australia in the early 17th century and began settling in 1788 to establish penal colonies. The history museum was built on a small headland called Acton Peninsula. Surrounded by Lake Burley Griffin, the NMA opened in 2001 based on the design of architect Howard Raggatt.