I confront most people who say “there’s nothing to do in this city” with “what have you seen in this glorious city”. And this doesn’t really hold true for Kolkata per-se. Each city holds its own unique flavour and treasure trove to discover. It requires one’s inquisitiveness to discover the city one lives in. To this end, I made a visit to the Indian Museum on Chowringee on Saturday.
The last time and that was the first time I had visited this great Museum was on a vacation to Kolkata at the insistence of my college buddies from Delhi. We had made a trip to Darjeeling (also my first time there) in 1995 and also stayed in Kolkata for several days. That was the first time I had actually been to places as a tourist and among the first time visits, apart from the Museum was the Birla Planetarium.
Anyway, the reason for this visit was “The Mummy”. I had told my wife about this Egyptian Mummy that was on display at the Indian Museum and had wanted to show her the same for a while now. So off we went in the sweltering Kolkata afternoon to visit the Indian Museum. We managed to get parking in the New Empire Lane just beside New Market and then walked to the Museum.
A Rs.10 entry per head + Rs. 50 for the Camera and off we went from room to room discovering History right down the ages. When I mean down the ages, it’s literally from Mammoth to Mummy and more. It was a fun hour or so in there, our main agenda being the Mummy. Of course one could spend hours in there if one has interest in archaeology and history, but just as a lay visitor some of the relics are quite bewildering.
So if you’re ever about to say, “there’s nothing to do in this city”, make a visit to the Indian Museum.
The Indian Museum is the largest and oldest museum in India and has rare collections of antiques, armour and ornaments, fossils, skeletons, mummies, and Mughal paintings. It was founded by the Asiatic Society of Bengal in Kolkata (Calcutta), India, in 1814. The founder curator was Nathaniel Wallich, a Danish botanist.
It has six sections comprising thirty five galleries of cultural and scientific artifacts namely Art, Archaeology, Anthropology, Geology, Zoology and Economic Botany. Many rare and unique specimens, both Indian and trans-Indian, relating to humanities and natural sciences, are preserved and displayed in the galleries of these sections. the administrative control of the Cultural sections, viz. Art, Archaeology and Anthropology rests with the Board of Trustees under its Directorate, and that of the three other science sections is with the geological survey of India, the zoological survey of India and the Botanical survey of India. The museum Directorate has eight co-ordinating service units: Education, Preservation, publication, presentation, photography, medical, modelling and library. This multipurpose Institution with multidisciplinary activities is being included as an Institute of national importance in the seventh schedule of the Constitution of India. It is one of oldest museums in the world. This is an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. The present Director of the Indian Museum is B. Venugopal. The museum was closed to visitors due to massive restoration and upgrades from 1 September 2013 to 3 February 2014.
Collections
It currently (2009) occupies a resplendent mansion, and exhibits among others: an Egyptian mummy, The organs are taken out of the mummy's body through nostrils, except heart. The heart is placed in special chambers. The body was then massaged with salt and oil. The covering was done by thin cotton cloth[13]the Buddhist stupa from Bharhut, the Buddha's ashes, the Ashoka pillar, whose four-lion symbol became the official emblem of the Republic of India, fossil skeletons of prehistoric animals, an art collection, rare antiques, and a collection of meteorites. The Indian Museum is also regarded as "the beginning of a significant epoch initiating the socio-cultural and scientific achievements of the country. It is otherwise considered as the beginning of the modernity and the end of medieval era" by UZER Places.
The last time and that was the first time I had visited this great Museum was on a vacation to Kolkata at the insistence of my college buddies from Delhi. We had made a trip to Darjeeling (also my first time there) in 1995 and also stayed in Kolkata for several days. That was the first time I had actually been to places as a tourist and among the first time visits, apart from the Museum was the Birla Planetarium.
Anyway, the reason for this visit was “The Mummy”. I had told my wife about this Egyptian Mummy that was on display at the Indian Museum and had wanted to show her the same for a while now. So off we went in the sweltering Kolkata afternoon to visit the Indian Museum. We managed to get parking in the New Empire Lane just beside New Market and then walked to the Museum.
A Rs.10 entry per head + Rs. 50 for the Camera and off we went from room to room discovering History right down the ages. When I mean down the ages, it’s literally from Mammoth to Mummy and more. It was a fun hour or so in there, our main agenda being the Mummy. Of course one could spend hours in there if one has interest in archaeology and history, but just as a lay visitor some of the relics are quite bewildering.
So if you’re ever about to say, “there’s nothing to do in this city”, make a visit to the Indian Museum.
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The Indian MuseumThe Indian Museum is the largest and oldest museum in India and has rare collections of antiques, armour and ornaments, fossils, skeletons, mummies, and Mughal paintings. It was founded by the Asiatic Society of Bengal in Kolkata (Calcutta), India, in 1814. The founder curator was Nathaniel Wallich, a Danish botanist.
It has six sections comprising thirty five galleries of cultural and scientific artifacts namely Art, Archaeology, Anthropology, Geology, Zoology and Economic Botany. Many rare and unique specimens, both Indian and trans-Indian, relating to humanities and natural sciences, are preserved and displayed in the galleries of these sections. the administrative control of the Cultural sections, viz. Art, Archaeology and Anthropology rests with the Board of Trustees under its Directorate, and that of the three other science sections is with the geological survey of India, the zoological survey of India and the Botanical survey of India. The museum Directorate has eight co-ordinating service units: Education, Preservation, publication, presentation, photography, medical, modelling and library. This multipurpose Institution with multidisciplinary activities is being included as an Institute of national importance in the seventh schedule of the Constitution of India. It is one of oldest museums in the world. This is an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. The present Director of the Indian Museum is B. Venugopal. The museum was closed to visitors due to massive restoration and upgrades from 1 September 2013 to 3 February 2014.
Collections
It currently (2009) occupies a resplendent mansion, and exhibits among others: an Egyptian mummy, The organs are taken out of the mummy's body through nostrils, except heart. The heart is placed in special chambers. The body was then massaged with salt and oil. The covering was done by thin cotton cloth[13]the Buddhist stupa from Bharhut, the Buddha's ashes, the Ashoka pillar, whose four-lion symbol became the official emblem of the Republic of India, fossil skeletons of prehistoric animals, an art collection, rare antiques, and a collection of meteorites. The Indian Museum is also regarded as "the beginning of a significant epoch initiating the socio-cultural and scientific achievements of the country. It is otherwise considered as the beginning of the modernity and the end of medieval era" by UZER Places.
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