The museum originally opened in 1964 on the 3rd floor of the now Kaminoge campus library, to coincide with the inauguration of the postgraduate school. It then moved to its present location in Tama and since then it has widely been used by students and non-students alike. The collection covers world cultures from Prehistory to the present day and hosts, amongst others, Hellenistic sculptures, Roman vases, 19th Century English glass artifacts, Art Nouveau lithographs, Indonesian traditional clothing, Hiroshige Ando's ukiyoe paintings and Picasso's ceramic works. Recently, works by artists that have connections with the university have been added into the collection. 

Ken Kudo Exhibition