Museums in Kolkata

“The City of  Joy”, Kolkata boasts of various historical museums which have both architectural and historical significance. Museums conserve the history of not only Kolkata but Bengal  from the Old British days till the recent times.

The major museums of Kolkata:

Indian Museum is the largest and one of the oldest museum not only in India but in Asia too. It is the only museum of national repute which has approximately sixty galleries of Art, Archaeology, Anthropology, Geology, Zoology and Botany sections, spread over ten thousand square feet area. Many rare specimens both Indian and Trans - Indian origin relating to Humanities and Natural Science are preserved and displayed in the galleries of these sections.

The museum was founded by Dr. Nathaniel Wallich, a botanist in 1814. It is situated at the Asiatic Society of 1, Park Street, Kolkata.
Location: Jawaharlal Nehru Road, Park Street area
Timings: 10.00-17.00 (March – November), 10.00-16.30 (December – February)
Entry Fees - Indian: Rs. 10.00 (Baby in arms free.), Foreigners: Rs. 150.00

For more details can visit http://indianmuseumkolkata.org

The art museum is among one of famous visiting places for art lovers in Kolkata , which is located in the main campus of University of Kolkata. It was established in 1937 and became thee first public museum in any University in India. The university museum is named after Sir Ashutosh Mukherjee who was the Vice-Chancellor of the university. The objective of the museum was to collect and preserve specimens of various phases of Indian art with special emphasis on the art of Bengal.

The museum houses some finest Hindu and Buddhist sculpture and an extensive collection of patachitras from Bengal, playing cards, palm leaf manuscripts and ritual objects of different eras of Bengal's history.

Location: University of Calcutta (Main Campus), College Street
Timings: 10.30 A.M.to 5.00 P.M. (Monday-Friday), 10.30 A.M. to 1.30 P.M. (Saturday)
* Closed on - Sunday & National Holiday
Entry Fee: Rs. 10.00 per person

Victoria Memorial:

The Victoria Memorial of Kolkata was established in 1921 which is commonly known as “White Palace”, has its historic significance. Located in 1, Queens way in Kolkata city, was founded in the memory of Victoria Queen of United Kingdom. The memorial building is now serves as a museum and tourist attraction too.

The Monument was built in Indo-Saracenic style with Mughal elements in the structure. The idea behind the structure is to serve as a tribute to successful British Empire in India. Inside the museum there is a huge collection of remembrances relating to Victoria and the British presence in India as well as other exhibits. The collection includes weapons, sculptors, paintings, maps, coins, stamps, artefacts, textiles, etc. The Memorial is decoratively illuminated at night.

The Memorial also contains a Royal Gallery housing a number of portraits of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and paintings illustrating their life. After India gained independence in the year 1947, certain additions were made to the Victoria Memorial. These additions formed National Leader's Gallery, containing the portraits and relics relating to Indian independence.

Location: Queen's Way, Kolkata
Timings:
Victoria Memorial Garden - 5.30 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Victoria Memorial Hall (Museum) - 10.00 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Closed on Mondays)
Entry Fees:
Victoria Memorial Garden: Daily ticket : Rs. 4/- per head, per entry, Monthly ticket : Rs.100/- per head, Yearly ticket : Rs. 1000/- (Garden tickets does not entitle entry to the museum building)
Victoria Memorial Hall (Museum): For Indians - the entry fee to the museum is Rs. 10/- (per head), For all foreigners - the entry fee to the museum is Rs. 150/-(per head)
* Free for school children up to 12 years age in uniform and Army personnel in uniform

For more details can visit http://www.victoriamemorial-cal.org

The famous Rabindra Bharti Museum was established in the year of 1961 in the remembrance of famous poet and Nobel laureate Gurudev Rabindra Nath Tagore, of Bengal. The place is widely known as “Thakurbari” which was the home of Rabindra Nath Tagore,is located in 6/4, Dwarkanath, Tagore Lane.The museum is a part of the Rabindra Bharati University, which is also situated inside the Thakurbari complex.

The museum houses the paintings of Tagores, Bengal school, manuscripts of Rabindranath Tagore and the family, photographs, rich collection of books and journals, original paintings and other items related to the leading personalities of the 19th century such as Iswar Chanda Vidyasagar and Dwarkanath Tagore. Every year various cultural programes hosts by the museum including Poila Baisakh, 25th Baishakh which is the birthday of Rabindranath Tagore, 22nd Sravana the date of poet demise and the birth anniversaries of world famous poets.

Location: Dwarakanath Tagore Lane  Kolkata
Timings: 10:00 am to 5:00 pm.
Free Entry

Birla Industrial & Technological Museum is situated in 19A, Gurusaday road, in South Kolkata. It was founded in 1956 and was initiated by the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and was came under the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) in 1978. The basic objective of the museum is to evoke the thirst for science and a concept of technology amongst the mass, particularly the students.

Location: Gurusaday Road, Kolkata
Timings: 10.00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (Tuesday to Sunday)
Entry Fees: Rs. 15 (General Public), Rs. 7 (Students)

Calcutta Museum/ Kolkata Panorama:

Kolkata Panorama is famous for enriching exhibits of Bengal History and culture of 500 years. It is located in the historic town hall of Kolkata which is India’s first multimedia story telling museum. The museum is successfully run from the year 2002 and holds a large collection of various models and interactive exhibits, which are displayed in Bengali language.

The initiative of this kind of multimedia museum is a remarkable way and appreciable in such a way to portray the complete story of Kolkata, covering every aspect but in a interesting manner.

Birla Planetarium

Birla Academy of Art and Cultural Museum holds regular exhibitions of contemporary Indian painters as well as sculptures. It is one of the foremost museums in Kolkata, situated in Rabindra Sarobar, Kolkata. It was founded in 1966 and is a state gallery showcasing traditional and cultural heritage of India as well as permanent showcase of Indian Contemporary art.

The museum is rich in collection of folk arts and crafts of Bengal.It was established in 1961 is near about 15km from Kolkata on the Diamond Harbour Road. The museum contains a small but rich collection of the folk arts and crafts of undivided Bengal. Seminars & demonstrations on folk art & culture are held in the annexe and the grounds of the museum.The idea behind this museum was of Sri Gurusaday Dutta who himself collected the exquisite specimen of dying folk traditions and after his death in 1941 the unique collection was handed over to the Bengal Bratachari Society.

Location: Joka, Kolkata
Timings: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (Except Mondays & Gazetted Holidays)
Entry Fees: Indian Students: Rs.2/-, Adult Indians: Rs.10/-, Foreigner (all Ages): Rs. 50/-