The Asiatic Society of Mumbai (formerly ''Asiatic Society of Bombay'') is a

learned society A learned society (; also learned academy, scholarly society, or academic association) is an organization that exists to promote an academic discipline, profession, or a group of related disciplines such as the arts and science. Membership m ...

in the field of Asian studies based in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' fin ...

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 ...

. It can trace its origin to the Literary Society of Bombay which first met in Mumbai on 26 November 1804, and was founded by

Sir James Mackintosh Sir James Mackintosh FRS FRSE (24 October 1765 – 30 May 1832) was a Scottish jurist, Whig politician and Whig historian. His studies and sympathies embraced many interests. He was trained as a doctor and barrister, and worked also as a jo ...

. It was formed with the intention of "promoting useful knowledge, particularly such as is now immediately connected with India". After the

Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society (RAS), was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the en ...

was established in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in 1823, the Literary Society of Bombay became affiliated with it and was known as the Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society (BBRAS) since 1830. The ''Bombay Geographical Society'' merged with it in 1873, followed by the ''Anthropological Society of Bombay'' in 1896. In 1954, it was separated from the Royal Asiatic Society and renamed the Asiatic Society of Bombay. In 2002, it acquired its present name. It is funded by an annual grant from the Central Government of India.

Aims and objectives

The aims and objectives of the Society when it was formed in the year 1804 were "to promote useful knowledge particularly such as is now immediately connected with India". Thereafter, on several occasions, some more aims and objectives were added such as encouraging the research studies in the language, philosophy, arts and natural and social sciences in relation to India and Asia, publishing journals, maintaining a library and museum, establishing institutes and centres which fulfill aims and objects of the Society.

Holdings

The library of the Society has over a hundred thousand books out of which 15,000 are classified as rare and valuable. It also has priceless artifacts and over 3,000 ancient manuscripts in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

and

Prakrit The Prakrits (; sa, prākṛta; psu, 𑀧𑀸𑀉𑀤, ; pka, ) are a group of vernacular Middle Indo-Aryan languages that were used in the Indian subcontinent from around the 3rd century BCE to the 8th century CE. The term Prakrit is usu ...

, mostly on paper but some on palm leaf. The numismatic collection of 11,829 coins includes a gold coin of

Kumaragupta I Kumaragupta I (Gupta script: ''Ku-ma-ra-gu-pta'', r. c. 415–455 CE) was an emperor of the Gupta Empire of Ancient India. A son of the Gupta emperor Chandragupta II and queen Dhruvadevi, he seems to have maintained control of his inherited te ...

, a rare gold

mohur The Mohur is a gold coin that was formerly minted by several governments, including British India and some of the princely states which existed alongside it, the Mughal Empire, Kingdom of Nepal, and Persia (chiefly Afghanistan). It was usually ...

of Akbar and coins issued by

Shivaji maharaj Shivaji Bhonsale I (; 19 February 1630 – 3 April 1680), also referred to as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, was an Indian ruler and a member of the Bhonsle Maratha clan. Shivaji carved out his own independent kingdom from the declining Adils ...

. Its map collection comprises 1300 maps. The collection of the Society include: # One of only two known original copies of

Dante Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian people, Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', origin ...

's ''

Divine Comedy The ''Divine Comedy'' ( it, Divina Commedia ) is an Italian narrative poem by Dante Alighieri, begun 1308 and completed in around 1321, shortly before the author's death. It is widely considered the pre-eminent work in Italian literature ...

''. # The manuscript of ''Vasupujyacharita'' (1242), a Sanskrit text on the life of the

Jain Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...

Tirthankara In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (Sanskrit: '; English: literally a ' ford-maker') is a saviour and spiritual teacher of the '' dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a '' tirtha'', which is a fordable pass ...

Vasupujya Vasupujya was the twelfth tirthankara in Jainism of the '' avasarpini'' (present age). According to Jain beliefs, he became a siddha, a liberated soul which has destroyed all of its karma. Vasupujya was born to King Vasupujya and Queen Jaya De ...

. # ''The manuscript of Shahnama of Firdausi'' (1853), written in

. # ''The Aranyakaparvan'' (16th century) manuscript contains illustrated text from the

Mahabharat The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the '' Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuru ...

and is written in Sanskrit. # Five

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 ...

caskets excavated in the ancient port town of

Sopara Nala Sopara or Nallasopara (Pronunciation: aːla sopaɾa formerly known as Sopara or Supara, is a town within the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The town lies in the Palghar district of Maharashtra, India and is governed by Vasai-Virar Municipal ...

near the suburb of

Nala Sopara Nala Sopara or Nallasopara (Pronunciation: aːla sopaɾa formerly known as Sopara or Supara, is a town within the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. The town lies in the Palghar district of Maharashtra, India and is governed by Vasai-Virar Municipal ...

The Divine Comedy

The manuscript of the ''

'', a poem composed by

Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; – 14 September 1321), probably baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri and often referred to as Dante (, ), was an Italian poet, writer and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called (modern Italian: '' ...

in the 14th century, was written in the second half of the 15th century. It is a beautiful codex on parchment and richly illustrated. It was given to the Society by

Mountstuart Elphinstone Mountstuart Elphinstone (6 October 1779 – 20 November 1859) was a Scottish statesman and historian, associated with the government of British India. He later became the Governor of Bombay (now Mumbai) where he is credited with the open ...

, governor of Bombay and President of the Society from 1819–1827 and bears his signature.Tharoor, Ishaan (2 January 2009)
''"The Divine Comedy of Mumbai"''

TIME Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

. Retrieved on 14 February 2011 It is said that, in the 1930s, the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

government under Benito Mussolini offered the society one million pounds, calling the book a national treasure. Mussolini believed that the offer could not be refused, but to his shock, the Society turned down his request stating that it was donated by an ex-member of the Society and hence it was their property.

Functions of the society

* Holding: Preserving, conserving, cataloguing and documenting holdings. * Research: Generating supporting and disseminating research in its chosen fields. * Public interface: Providing a forum for debate and discussions on topics of public interest. The adopt-a-book scheme was recently introduced by the Society which allows patrons to fund the upkeep of rare books. The Society is financially in the red with a loss of Rs 1 crore (10 million). Due to the availability of information from the

internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

, membership has dropped significantly in recent years.

Journal

Initially, the Literary Society of Bombay published its transactions under the title, ''Transactions of the Literary Society of Bombay''. In 1841, the Asiatic Society of Bombay commenced publishing its journal titled, ''Journal of the Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society''. From 1955 to 2002, it published its journal under the name, ''Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bombay'' and from 2002, its journal has been published under the name, ''Journal of the Asiatic Society of Mumbai''.

Digitization of Collection

The Society has undertaken digitization of all its collection including books, newspapers, manuscripts, government publications, journals and maps and has made them available on the Society's digital platform ‘Granth Sanjeevani'.

Awards

Campbell Memorial Gold Medal

The Campbell Memorial Gold Medal was established in 1907 and is awarded to recognize distinguished services on the subject of Oriental History, Folklore or Ethnology which further the investigation and encouragement of Oriental Arts, Sciences and Literature. The first winner was archaeologist

Aurel Stein Sir Marc Aurel Stein, ( hu, Stein Márk Aurél; 26 November 1862 – 26 October 1943) was a Hungarian-born British archaeologist, primarily known for his explorations and archaeological discoveries in Central Asia. He was also a professor at ...

in 1908.

MM.Dr. P.V.Kane Gold Medal

Established in 1946, the medal is awarded for valuable research work in Vedic Studies or in Classical Sanskrit with special reference to Dharma Shastra and Poetics.

Silver Medal

The Silver Medal is awarded to a member of the Society who has written a book adjudged as the best in the given 3-year period.

Town Hall

Mumbai 03-2016 70 Asiatic Society Library

The Asiatic Society of Mumbai Town Hall or just Town Hall (colloquially Called "Tondal" in the 19th century) that houses the Asiatic Society of Mumbai was not built in 1804, the year in which the Literary Society of Bombay was formed. Though Sir James Mackintosh mooted the proposal for a grand edifice, it was not completed until the year 1 after many fits and starts, when the Government of Bombay agreed to make up for the shortfall in funds in return for office-space. Apart from the Asiatic Society of Mumbai, the building also houses State Central Library and a museum, Maharashtra Women's Association, and the Additional Stamp Controller Office. The edifice is in the prime Fort area of

South Mumbai South Mumbai, colloquially SoBo from South Bombay in Anglo-Indian English, administratively the Mumbai City District, is the city centre and the southernmost precinct of Greater Bombay. It extends from Colaba to Mahim and Sion neighbour ...

overlooking the

Horniman Circle Gardens The Horniman Circle Gardens is a large park in South Mumbai, India, which encompasses an area of 2½ acres (10,100 m²). It is situated in the Fort district of Mumbai, and is surrounded by office complexes housing the country's premier banks. D ...

and the Reserve Bank of India.

Administration

The Managing Committee looks after the administration of the Society. The Managing Committee consists of a President, Four Vice Presidents, an Hon. Secretary, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Society, and Fifteen members who are elected from among the Resident members. In addition to the elected members, the Central Government and State Government have one representative each. In September 2019, Vispi Balaporia became the first woman president of The Asiatic Society of Mumbai in its 215-year-old history.

Early Presidents

;Literary Society of Bombay (1804) *1804 Hon. Sir

James Mackintosh Sir James Mackintosh FRS FRSE (24 October 1765 – 30 May 1832) was a Scottish jurist, Whig politician and Whig historian. His studies and sympathies embraced many interests. He was trained as a doctor and barrister, and worked also as a jo ...

*1811 Dr R. Stewart *1815 William Taylor Money *1818 Olyett Woodhouse *1819 Hon.

( Governor of Bombay) *1827 Sir

John Malcolm Major-General Sir John Malcolm GCB, KLS (2 May 1769 – 30 May 1833) was a Scottish soldier, diplomat, East India Company administrator, statesman, and historian. Early life Sir John Malcolm was born in 1769, one of seventeen children of Ge ...

(Governor of Bombay) ;Bombay Branch of the

Royal Asiatic Society The Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, commonly known as the Royal Asiatic Society (RAS), was established, according to its royal charter of 11 August 1824, to further "the investigation of subjects connected with and for the en ...

(1829) *1830 John Romer (Acting Governor of Bombay) *1831 Lt-Col Vans Kennedy *1835 Rev. John Wilson, FRS *1843 Hon.

George William Anderson George William Anderson (1791 – 12 March 1857) was the officiating governor of Bombay during the British Raj from 28 April 1841 to 9 June 1842. Anderson entered the Bombay Civil Service in 1806. He was responsible for drawing up the Bombay Ci ...

(Acting Governor of Bombay) *1846 Hon. Lestock Robert Reid (Acting Governor of Bombay) *1849 Hon. John Pollard Willoughby *1853 Rev. John Stevenson *1855 Hon. William Edward Frere *1864 Hon. Justice Henry Newton *1869 Hon. Henry Pendock St George Tucker *1875 Hon. James J. Gibbs *1881 Hon. Sir

Raymond West Sir Raymond West (18 September 1832 in County Kerry, Ireland – 8 September 1912) was a barrister King's Inns Dublin 1871, Puisne Judge of the High Court of Bombay, 1873–87; President of the Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society, ...

*1893 Hon. Justice

Kashinath Trimbak Telang Kashinath Trimbak Telang (20 August 1850, Bombay – 1 September 1893, Bombay) was an Indologist and Indian judge at Bombay High Court. Early life and education Telang was born in a Gaud Saraswat Brahmin family. At the age of five Telang was se ...

*1894 Hon. Herbert Mills Birdwood (Acting Governor of Bombay) *1895 Hon. Justice Sir John Jardine *1897 Dr. Peter Peterson *1900 Hon. Justice Edward Townshend Candy *1903 Hon. E.M.H. Fulton

Notes and References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asiatic Society of Mumbai, The Education in Mumbai Culture of Mumbai Libraries in Mumbai Asian studies Deposit libraries Government buildings completed in 1830 1830 establishments in India Neoclassical architecture in India