The National Library of the Maldives, Qaumee Kuthubuhaanaa, was established in 1945 by Sultan Abdul Majeed Didi and is the oldest cultural institution in the country. It holds the most complete collection of works in Dhivehi script anywhere — including ola fath, the old palm-leaf manuscripts that were the standard medium of writing before paper.
It functions as a working library rather than a museum, but the reading room is open to visitors who sign in at the entrance, and the small display of historic manuscripts is one of the more unusual things you can see in Malé without paying admission. Closed Fridays and Islamic holidays.