MY · Penang · 5.56°N 100.42°E

guar kepah archaeological gallery

A new gallery on the shell mounds where the 5,700-year-old Penang Woman was found.

Best time
Any time of year, as it's mostly indoors. The gallery closes on public holidays, so plan around them.
How long
2–3 hours
Getting there
About 4 hours' drive from KL on the North–South Expressway; leave at Kepala Batas and it's about 10 minutes away. From George Town, allow about 45 minutes over the Penang Bridge.
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MY · Penangguar kepah archaeological gallery5.56°N 100.42°Egowherelah.com
Dear group chat,A new gallery on the shell mounds where the 5,700-year-old Penang Woman was found.— gowherelahTo: whoever’s drivingGuar Kepah Archaeological GalleryMY, Penang
KLguar kepah archaeological gallery
≈ 304 km from KL, as the crow flies
New gallery under construction

Photo: LEE 003 · CC BY 4.0

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Photos: Wikimedia Commons, credited on each.

Guar Kepah, near Kepala Batas, is one of Malaysia's key prehistoric sites: mounds of shells left by people who lived and buried their dead here thousands of years ago. The gallery, opened by the Prime Minister in January 2026, is built on the dig, and its story centres on Penang Woman, the first complete Neolithic skeleton found in Malaysia.

Makan

  1. Ikan bakarKepala Batas's Malay restaurants do grilled fish with rice and curry, a good late lunch after the gallery.Map ↗
  2. Mee udangRoadside stalls at Sungai Dua, on the way back towards Butterworth, do prawn noodles in a sweet-spicy gravy.Map ↗

Things to do

  1. Penang WomanAbout 5,700 years old and dug up here in 2017. The excavation where she was found is part of the gallery.Map ↗
  2. The shell middensGuar means mound and kepah is a clam; the displays explain who piled up the shell heaps and how they lived.Map ↗
  3. The returned skeletons41 sets of remains dug up here in colonial times spent nearly a century in the Netherlands before coming home in August 2025.Map ↗
  4. Kampung AgongThe coconut-grove kampung park in Penaga is about 10 minutes away.Map ↗

Good to know

  • The gallery is closed on public holidays, so a long weekend is the wrong time to come.
  • There's a café on site, but for a proper meal head into Kepala Batas town.

Last checked October 2026. Things change, so check opening times, fees and transport before you go.