Indian Museum

Indian Museum
The courtyard of the Indian Museum
Map
Established2 February 1814; 210 years ago (2 February 1814)
Location27, Jawaharlal Nehru Road, Park Street, Kolkata - 700016
Coordinates22°33′29″N 88°21′03″E / 22.55806°N 88.35083°E / 22.55806; 88.35083
TypeMuseum
Collection size2.5 million
DirectorArijit Dutta Choudhury
Public transit accessKolkata Metro (Park Street)
Websiteindianmuseumkolkata.org

The Indian Museum (formerly called Imperial Museum of Calcutta before independence,[1][2]) is a massive museum in Central Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It is the ninth oldest museum in the world and the oldest and largest museum in Asia, by size of collection.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9] It 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 Indian 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. In particular the art and archaeology sections hold collections of international importance.

It is an autonomous organization under the Ministry of Culture, 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.[10]

  1. ^ Indian Museum information and experience, Kolkata Archived 3 February 2020 at the Wayback Machine, Ministry of Culture, Government of India
  2. ^ "Home | Indian Museum Kolkata". indianmuseumkolkata.org. Archived from the original on 20 December 2017. Retrieved 22 October 2019.
  3. ^ "Indian Museum, Kolkata: Information, History, Timings, Entry Fee, Facts". FabHotels Travel Blog. 20 June 2019. Archived from the original on 29 September 2020. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  4. ^ "indian museum address - ixigo trip planner!". www.ixigo.com. Archived from the original on 29 June 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  5. ^ "Indian Museum, Kolkata: A History of Indian Sculpture". The Heritage Lab. 1 December 2016. Archived from the original on 16 February 2020. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  6. ^ "National Portal and Digital Repository". museumsofindia.gov.in. Archived from the original on 25 May 2020. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  7. ^ "History Of The Museum | Indian Museum Kolkata". indianmuseumkolkata.org. Archived from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  8. ^ "Indian Museum | Kolkata (Calcutta), India Attractions". Lonely Planet. Archived from the original on 24 June 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  9. ^ "Indian Museum Kolkata | Timings, Entry Fee, History". www.holidify.com. Archived from the original on 1 November 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2020.
  10. ^ "Indian Participants - National Council of Science Museums." Ncsm.gov.in/TenderDoc/Announcement%20Brochure%20India.pdf. N.p., n.d. Web.