Location
Government Museum of Chennai lies off the Pantheon Road in the
Egmore region of the city suburbs. The museum is one of the prime
attractions in the city. It is one of the first government sponsored
museum in Indian sub continent. The museum is one great tourist
destination in the state of Tamil Nadu, besides popular temples and
monuments.
Overview
The Government Museum was initially housed in the College of Fort
St. George. In the same era an elite British group, by the name of
Pantheon Committee, was working to improve the social life of
expatriates in the city. To carry out their mission the Pantheon
group constructed a group of buildings. These buildings were spread
over an area of about 16.25 acres. The Government Museum expanded
vigorously and needed a new place. It was year 1851 when the museum
was moved into the buildings constructed by the committee. The
museum, at present, consists of a number of sections holding some
rare collections throughout the continent.
Features
The Government Museum is the first such institution to be
established by the government. The museum at Chennai contains some
of the priced collections in Asia. The museum makes up a grand
repository encompassing art gallery, theatre, public library and
more. The museum complex has been divided into various sections
based on certain defined fields. These sections include Geology,
Archeology, Anthropology, Numismatics, Botany, Zoology and
Sculpture.
The galleries of the museum house real treasures and are worth a
peek. There are four galleries in all, which are- Hindu Sculpture
Gallery, Bronze Gallery, Amravathi Gallery and the National Art
Gallery. The bronze sculptures are exceptional featuring
masterpieces like bronzes of Nataraja, Durga, Ganesha, all belonging
to the Chola Empire.
The objects considered to belong to industrial arts are
fascinating. Wood carving, ivory work, metal carving and inlay work
is presented by the collection of industrial arts. A rich collection
of coins belonging to different historical periods are housed in the
Numismatics section. The Archeological section contains 400 objects
of art.
Besides the popular sections there is one section dedicated to the
children. The Children's museum is meant to inculcate curiosity
level and better understanding of various existing phenomena. Some
galleries of Children's Museum include Civilization Gallery, the
Transportation Gallery and the Kids Corner.
Accessibility
The museum is located in the vicinity of Egmore Railway Station,
less than a kilometre away. From central railway station the place
is about two kms away.
Visiting Hours
The museum is open on all days except Fridays and National
Holidays. The visiting hours of the museum are from 9.30 a.m. to
5.00 p.m.
Entry Fee For children below 12 years entry fee is Rs. 10
per head (Indian Nationals). For adults fee is Rs. 15 per head
(Indian Nationals). For bona fide students fee is Rs. 5 per head
(Indian Nationals). The fee for foreign visitors falling in the
above categories fees are Rs. 250, Rs. 125 and Rs. 75 respectively.
Contacts
For further information contact the person on the given telephone
number- 28193238
 |
|
