The Indian Museum in Central
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
,
West Bengal
West Bengal (, Bengali: ''Poshchim Bongo'', , abbr. WB) is a state in the eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabitants within an area of . West Bengal is the fourt ...
, India, also referred to as the Imperial Museum at Calcutta in colonial-era texts, is the ninth oldest museum in the world, the
oldest and largest museum in India as well as in Asia. It has rare collections of antiques, armour and ornaments, fossils, skeletons, mummies and
Mughal painting
Mughal painting is a style of painting on paper confined to miniature (illuminated manuscript), miniatures either as book illustrations or as single works to be kept in albums (muraqqa), from the territory of the Mughal Empire in South Asia. It e ...
s. It was founded by the
Asiatic Society of Bengal
The Asiatic Society is a government of India organisation founded during the Company rule in India to enhance and further the cause of "Oriental research", in this case, research into India and the surrounding regions. It was founded by the p ...
in
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
(Calcutta), India, in 1814. The founder curator was
Nathaniel Wallich
Nathaniel Wolff Wallich FRS FRSE (28 January 1786 – 28 April 1854) was a surgeon and botanist of Danish origin who worked in India, initially in the Danish settlement near Calcutta and later for the Danish East India Company and the British ...
, a
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
botanist.
It has six sections comprising thirty five galleries of cultural and scientific artifacts namely
Indian art
Indian art consists of a variety of art forms, including painting, sculpture, pottery, and textile arts such as woven silk. Geographically, it spans the entire Indian subcontinent, including what is now India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, N ...
,
archaeology
Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
,
anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of behavi ...
,
geology
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...
,
zoology
Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the Animal, animal kingdom, including the anatomy, structure, embryology, evolution, Biological clas ...
and
economic botany
''Economic Botany'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal that covers all aspects of economic botany. The editor-in-chief is Robert A. Voeks (California State University, Fullerton). The journal was established in 1947 and is published b ...
. 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. In particular the art and archaeology sections hold collections of international importance.
It is an autonomous organization under
Ministry of Culture Ministry of Culture may refer to:
*Ministry of Tourism, Cultural Affairs, Youth and Sports (Albania)
* Ministry of Culture (Algeria)
*Ministry of Culture (Argentina)
*Minister for the Arts (Australia)
*Ministry of Culture (Azerbaijan)
* Ministry of ...
, Government of India. The present Director of the Indian Museum is Shri Arijit Dutta Choudhury who is also the Director General,
NCSM and having the additional charge of Director General of
National Library
A national library is a library established by a government as a country's preeminent repository of information. Unlike public library, public libraries, these rarely allow citizens to borrow books. Often, they include numerous rare, valuable, o ...
.
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
Institute of National Importance (INI) is a status that may be conferred on a premier public higher education institution in India by an act of Parliament of India, an institution which "serves as a pivotal player in developing highly skilled per ...
in the seventh schedule of the
Constitution of India
The Constitution of India (IAST: ) is the supreme law of India. The document lays down the framework that demarcates fundamental political code, structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions and sets out fundamental ri ...
.
History
The Indian Museum originated from the
Asiatic Society
The Asiatic Society is a government of India organisation founded during the Company rule in India to enhance and further the cause of "Oriental research", in this case, research into India and the surrounding regions. It was founded by the p ...
of Bengal which was created by Sir
William Jones in 1784. The concept of having a museum arose in 1796 from members of the Asiatic Society as a place where man-made and natural objects collected could be kept, cared for and displayed.
The objective began to look achievable in 1808 when the Society was offered suitable accommodation by the Government of India in the Chowringhee-Park Street area.
![The Museum, Chowringhee](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/The_Museum%2C_Chowringhee.jpg)
On February 2, 1814,
Nathaniel Wallich
Nathaniel Wolff Wallich FRS FRSE (28 January 1786 – 28 April 1854) was a surgeon and botanist of Danish origin who worked in India, initially in the Danish settlement near Calcutta and later for the Danish East India Company and the British ...
, a
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
botanist, who had been captured in the siege of Serampore but later released, wrote to the council of the Asiatic Society for the formation of a museum out of his own collection and that of the Asiatic Society in Calcutta, volunteering his service as a Curator wherein he proposed five sections—an archaeological, ethnological, a technical section and a geological and zoological one.
The council readily agreed and the Museum was created, with Wallich named the Honorary Curator and then Superintendent of the Oriental Museum of the
Asiatic Society
The Asiatic Society is a government of India organisation founded during the Company rule in India to enhance and further the cause of "Oriental research", in this case, research into India and the surrounding regions. It was founded by the p ...
. Wallich also donated a number of botanical specimens to the museum from his personal collection. In 1815, Mr William Lloyd Gibbons, Asst Secretary and Librarian, was appointed Joint Secretary of the Museum.
After the resignation of Wallich, curators were paid salaries by the Asiatic Society ranging from Rs 50 to Rs 200 a month. However, in 1836, when the bankers of the Asiatic Society (Palmer and Company) became insolvent, the Government began to pay the salary of the Curator from its public funds since a large part of the collection was that of the surveyors of Survey of India.
A temporary grant of Rs 200 per month was sanctioned for maintenance of the museum and library, and J. T. Pearson of the Bengal Medical Service was appointed curator, followed shortly by
John McClelland and, after the former's resignation, by
Edward Blyth
Edward Blyth (23 December 1810 – 27 December 1873) was an English zoologist who worked for most of his life in India as a curator of zoology at the museum of the Asiatic Society of India in Calcutta.
Blyth was born in London in 1810. In 1841 ...
.
In 1840, the Government took a keen interest in
geology
Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...
and mineral resources, and this led to an additional grant of Rs 250 per month for the geological section alone. In 1851 when the Geological Survey of India came into being with the advent of Sir Thomas Oldham, a rented building at 1, Hastings Road now K N Roy Road, the present site of the New Secretariat became its office. The geological collection of the Government of India 'Museum of Economic Geology' at the Asiatic Society, were then transferred to this site in 1856. The Asiatic Society geological collection were however held back with the condition that it would be handed over to the GSI once a Museum for all its collection came into being. It was way back in 1837 that Sir James Princeps, then-Secretary of the Asiatic Society, had written to the Government asking for a Museum paid for by the state. A movement for a full-fledged Museum was thereafter keenly pursued over a decade, and later, with Sir Thomas Oldham, then Superintendent of the Geological Survey of India, at the helm, it gained momentum.
The thrust for a full-fledged Museum was held up due to the intervention of the revolt of the sepoys of the East India Company. The matter was pursued again, once things settled down after India came under the Crown.
Thereafter the First Indian Museum Act was passed in 1866 and the foundation of the Indian Museum at its present site laid in 1867. In 1875 the present building on Chowringee Road, presently Jawaharlal Nehru Road, designed by W L Granville in consultation with Sir Thomas Holland, on Chowringee was completed. In 1877 after the retirement of Sir Thomas Oldham in 1876 the Geological Survey of India including the Museum of Economic Geology shifted here from its rented accommodation on 1 Hastings Road.
This building had been designated as the site the for not just the Asiatic Societies, Oriental Museum's collection and the Economic Geology collection of the Geological Survey of India but also to hold the offices of both.
The Asiatic Society however relinquished its rights preferring to maintain its autonomy from the government. The Geological Survey of India is till date headquartered at the buildings of the Indian Museum Complex and holds exclusive rights over the Geological galleries of the Indian Museum.
The building parallel to Sudder Street commenced in 1888 and occupied in 1891. The next building block at right angle to Sudder Street was erected in 1894. Half of this building was consigned to the Geological Survey of India but by 1912 it was wholly transferred to it.
The Zoological and Anthropological sections of the museum gave rise to the
Zoological Survey of India
The Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), founded on 1 July 1916 by Government of India Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, as premier Indian organisation in zoological research and studies to promote the survey, exploration and r ...
in 1916, which in turn gave rise to the
Anthropological Survey of India
Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI) is the apex Indian government organisation involved in anthropological studies and field data research for human and cultural aspects, working primarily in the fields of physical anthropology and cultural ...
in 1945.
The Scottish anatomist and zoologist
John Anderson John Anderson may refer to:
Business
*John Anderson (Scottish businessman) (1747–1820), Scottish merchant and founder of Fermoy, Ireland
* John Byers Anderson (1817–1897), American educator, military officer and railroad executive, mentor of ...
took up the position of curator in 1865, and catalogued the mammal and archaeology collections. The English zoologist
James Wood-Mason
James Wood-Mason (December 1846 – 6 May 1893) was an English zoologist. He was the director of the Indian Museum at Calcutta, after John Anderson. He collected marine animals and lepidoptera, but is best known for his work on two other groups ...
worked at the museum from 1869 and succeeded Anderson as curator in 1887.
The museum was closed to visitors for restoration and upgrades from September 2013 to February 2014.
Collections
Egyptian
It currently occupies a resplendent mansion, and exhibits among others: an
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
ian mummy. The mummy is being restored.
Indian
The large collection of ancient and medieval Indian artifacts include the complete railings and gateways of the
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
stupa
A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation.
In Buddhism, circumamb ...
from
Bharhut
Bharhut is a village located in the Satna district of Madhya Pradesh, central India. It is known for its famous relics from a Buddhist stupa. What makes Bharhut panels unique is that each panel is explicitly labelled in Brahmi characters mentioni ...
(the bare stupa is still at Bharhut, near
Satna
Satna is a city in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. It serves as the headquarters of Satna district. It is 7th largest city and 8th most populous city of the state. The city is 500 km east of the state capital Bhopal. The city is ...
, MP). The Bharhut panels are unique in that they are properly labelled in the
Brahmi script
Brahmi (; ; ISO: ''Brāhmī'') is a writing system of ancient South Asia. "Until the late nineteenth century, the script of the Aśokan (non-Kharosthi) inscriptions and its immediate derivatives was referred to by various names such as 'lath' o ...
. Are preserved are
Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...
's relics, a copy of the
Lion Capital of Ashoka
The Lion Capital of Ashoka is the Capital (architecture), capital, or head, of a column erected by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka in Sarnath, India, . Its crowning features are four life-sized lions set back to back on a drum-shaped abacus (arch ...
from an
Ashoka pillar
The pillars of Ashoka are a series of monolithic columns dispersed throughout the Indian subcontinent, erected or at least inscribed with edicts by the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka during his reign from c. 268 to 232 BCE. Ashoka used the expressi ...
(original in the
Sarnath Museum
Sarnath Museum is the oldest site museum of Archaeological Survey of India. It houses the findings and excavations at the archaeological site of Sarnath, by the Archaeological Survey of India. Sarnath is located near Varanasi, in the state of Ut ...
) whose four-lion symbol became the official emblem of the
Republic of India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
, fossil skeletons of
prehistoric
Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...
animals, an art collection, rare antiques, and a collection of meteorites.
![Stone sculpture of Devi Durga 30 Jan 2018](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Stone_sculpture_of_Devi_Durga_30_Jan_2018.jpg)
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.
Natural History
The museum has four galleries dedicated to natural history, namely the botanical, insect, mammal and bird galleries. It also contains prehistoric artifacts such as the huge
skeleton
A skeleton is the structural frame that supports the body of an animal. There are several types of skeletons, including the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside ...
of a
dinosaur
Dinosaurs are a diverse group of reptiles of the clade Dinosauria. They first appeared during the Triassic period, between 243 and 233.23 million years ago (mya), although the exact origin and timing of the evolution of dinosaurs is t ...
.
Museum gallery
Image:Elephant_specimen_kol.jpg, Elephant skeleton
File:Indian Museum, Kolkata, India.jpg, Gallery
File:Indian Museum, Bottles, Kolkata, India.jpg, Jars
Image:Musty_showcases_kol.jpg, Showcases with different types of fossils
Image:Sphinix at Indian Museam, Kolkatta.jpg, Egyptian Exhibit
Image:Indian Museum Kolkata 1465.jpg, Stone imprint of Buddha's foot
Image:Indian Museum Kolkata 1496.jpg, Buddha
Image:Palaeoloxodon namadicus.JPG, ''Palaeoloxodon namadicus
''Palaeoloxodon namadicus'' or the Asian straight-tusked elephant, is an extinct species of prehistoric elephant known from the early Middle to Late Pleistocene of the Indian subcontinent, and possibly also elsewhere in Asia.
Some authorities r ...
'', extinct elephant
Image:Indus civilisation seal unicorn at Indian Museum, Kolkata.jpg, Unicorn seal of Indus Valley
Image:Ashok Stambha at Indian Museum, Kolkata.jpg, Copy of the Lion Capital of Ashoka
The Lion Capital of Ashoka is the Capital (architecture), capital, or head, of a column erected by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka in Sarnath, India, . Its crowning features are four life-sized lions set back to back on a drum-shaped abacus (arch ...
Image:Skull of Indus Valley inhabitants, Indian Museum, Kolkata.jpg, Skull of Indus Valley inhabitants
Image:Preserved young goat with 8 legs, Indian Museum, Kolkata.jpg, Young goat with eight legs
File:Mathura Herakles.jpg, The Mathura Herakles.
File:Tsuri-daiko (gaku-daiko), the large Japanese hanging drum.jpg, A Tsuri-daiko (gaku-daiko), the large Japanese hanging drum, on display.
File:Revamped gallery of animals (specimens) at the Indian National Museum.jpg, Revamped gallery of animals (specimens)
File:Villagers around a fire.jpg, ''Villagers around a fire'', painting by Nainsukh
Nainsukh (literally "Joy of the Eyes"; c. 1710 – 1778) was an Indian painter. He was the younger son of the painter Pandit Seu and, like his older brother Manaku of Guler, was an important practitioner of Pahari painting, and has been c ...
. Jasrota
Jasrota kingdom in the Himalayan foothills of India was founded in 1064 A.D at south-eastern Jammu between the Ravi and the Ujh rivers which ended in 1815. The remainants of Jasrota kingdom exists as ruined forts, restored temples, water bod ...
, c. 1765-1775
References
External links
*
History of Indian MuseumIndian Museum Kolkata at Google Cultural InstituteDon Bosco MuseumThe Indian Museum Completes 200 Yearsby Shakunt Pandey
Publications of the Indian Museum
{{Authority control
1814 establishments in British India
National museums of India
Art museums and galleries in India
Archaeological museums in India
Natural history museums in India
Museums established in 1814
Museums in Kolkata
World's fair sites in India