This Wednesday afternoon, there was no lack of diversity amongst the crowds at Lima’s illustrious Museo de Arte de Lima (MALI, for short), one of the top museums in Lima. Roving students on school trips scampered past groups of nuns in habits, as tourists in sneakers and jeans mingled with freshly ironed businessmen and women on their lunch breaks. Despite their differences, every guest buzzed with anticipation for the same reason: the opening day for MALI’s long-awaited permanent collection.   MALI Permanent Collection  For seven years, the second-floor of MALI has been closed to the public for renovations. When the reopening date was announced to be September 9, 2015, Peruvian art and culture aficionados excitedly marked their calendars and planned excursions to the famed Palacio de Exposición. The renovated permanent collection boasts 1,200 of the best pieces from an extensive collection spanning 3,000 years of Peruvian history. The exhibit is housed in an exquisite new area with hardwood floors, a resplendent octagonal skylight, and high-powered lights to best display the pieces. Naturally, I was there on opening day. The exhibit is divided into four parts: Pre-Columbian, Colonial, Republican, and Modern art. The layout is designed so that visitors can walk “through history” in a chronological circuit while exploring offshoot rooms that delve deeper into specific topics, such as ancient textiles and metalworking. The exhibit provides an encyclopedic, illustrated history of Peru, intermixing the vast array of pottery, paintings, and photographs with the descriptions of each era’s political and social climate. Peru’s dynamic past is imbued in its rich and varied cultural legacy. The Pre-Columbian quarters kicks off the exhibit with a timeline of pottery ranging from 1532 AD to 1200 BC. The artifacts are divided by location, so the visitors can see the variations in pottery based on the needs