- Bust of Queen Victoria inside the museum.
- Museum ceiling.
- The original Kala Ghoda statue.
- Upper storey of the museum.
- Statue inside the museum.
- Multi-Barreled cannon
Established | 2 May 1872 |
---|---|
Location | Veer Mata Jijabai Bhonsle Udyan, Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar Marg, Byculla East, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400027. |
Coordinates | 18°58′46″N72°50′05″E / 18.979472°N 72.834806°E |
Founder | George Birdwood Jamsetjee Jeejeebhoy Bhau Daji Lad Jagannath Shankarseth George Buist |
Director | Tasneem Zakaria Mehta |
Website | www |
Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum is the oldest museum in Mumbai. Situated in the vicinity of Byculla Zoo, Byculla East, it was originally established in 1855 as a treasure house of the decorative and industrial arts, [1] and was later renamed in honour of Bhau Daji Lad.
John Elphinstone established the Central Museum of Natural History, Economy, Geology, Industry and Arts, the first museum in Bombay in 1855; George Buist took the major initiative for its inception. In 1857, it was closed to the public and its collection was shifted to the Town Hall. In 1858, George Birdwood was appointed curator of the museum. Soon, a committee was formed, comprising him, Bhau Daji Lad and Jaganath Shunkerseth to raise money for construction of a new building for the museum. The foundation of the new building was laid in 1862. It was built with the patronage of many wealthy Indian businessmen and philanthropists like David Sassoon, Sir Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy and Jaganath Shunkerseth.
The construction of the present building in Jijamata Udyan in Byculla started in 1862 and was completed in 1871. [2] The museum was opened on 2 May 1872 as The Victoria and Albert Museum, Bombay. A little more than a hundred years later, on 1 November 1975, the museum was renamed the Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum in honour of the man whose vision and dedication enabled its establishment. Bhau Daji Lad was the first Indian Sheriff of Mumbai, a philanthropist, historian, physician, surgeon and secretary of the Museum Committee when it was first instituted. [3]
The idea of setting up a museum in Mumbai was first mooted in 1850 when preparations were being made for the first ‘Great Exhibition of the Works of Industry of all Nations’ to be held in London's Crystal Palace in 1851. Prince Albert, the consort of Queen Victoria, wanted to present to the world the industrial arts and crafts of Britain's colonies and thereby stimulate trade for these products. The Great Exhibition was a catalyst for other world fairs and resulted in the establishment of new museums across the British Empire. The duplicates of art objects and raw products that were sent from the Bombay Presidency to the 1855 Paris Universal Exhibition thus formed the nucleus of a new museum that was set up at the Town Barracks in Fort and known as the ‘Government Central Museum’. [4]
In 2003, the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) in collaboration with the Jamnalal Bajaj Foundation and the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai undertook extensive refurbishment of the building. [5] [6]
After five years of painstaking and intensive work, the museum reopened to the Public on 4 January 2008.
In 2005, the museum won UNESCO's Asia-Pacific Award of Excellence in Cultural Conservation after being restored by conservation architect Vikas Dilawari. [7]
In 2016, the museum received the International Quality Crown award in the gold category for its focus on quality, continuous innovation, and customer satisfaction. [8]
The museum is managed by a public-private partnership, a first for a cultural institution in India. The partnership involves the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, the Jamnalal Bajaj Foundation and the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). [9]
Tasneem Zakaria Mehta is the honorary director of the museum and has a Board of Management and Trustees that include the mayor and the municipal commissioner of Mumbai. [10]
This museum houses a large number of archaeological finds, maps and historical photographs of Mumbai, clay models, silver and copper ware and costumes. Its significant collections include a 17th-century manuscript of Hatim Tai . [11] It also houses the iconic Kala Ghoda statue. Outside the museum is the installation of the monolithic basalt elephant sculpture recovered from the sea, which originated from Elephanta Island (Gharapuri Island).
Jijamata Udyaan, also known as the Byculla Zoo and formerly Victoria Gardens, is a zoo and garden covering 50 acres located at Byculla, in the heart of Mumbai, India. It is the oldest public garden in Mumbai. After Indian independence, it was named after Jijamata, the mother of Shivaji, the first Maratha emperor.
Byculla is an area of South Mumbai.
Kala Ghoda is a crescent-shaped art district/neighborhood in Mumbai, India. It hosts several of the city's heritage buildings including museums, art galleries and educational institutions like the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, the Jehangir Art Gallery, the National Gallery of Modern Art, and The Arts Trust - Institute of Contemporary Indian Art.
A resident of Mumbai is called a Mumbaikar. People prefer to stay close to a railway station for easy access to the metropolis. Many city-dwellers lead a fast-paced life with very little time for other activities owing to a significant amount of time spent on daily commuting.
Elphinstone College is one of the constituent colleges of Dr. Homi Bhabha State University, a state cluster university. Established in 1823, it is one of the oldest colleges in Mumbai. It played a major role in shaping and developing the educational landscape of the city. It also played a pivotal role in the inception of the University of Mumbai.
Sir Albert Abdullah David Sassoon, 1st Baronet, was a Baghdad-born businessman and philanthropist.
Ramachandra Vitthal Lad (1822–1874), commonly known as Dr. Bhau Daji Lad was an Indian physician, Sanskrit scholar, and an antiquarian. He served as the Sheriff of Bombay for two terms from 1869 to 1871. For his notable contribution in the making of modern Mumbai many roads, areas and even the museums are given his name in honour.
Jagannath ShankarshethMurkute popularly known as Nana Shankarsheth was an Indian Philanthropist and educationalist. He was born in the wealthy Murkute family in Murbad,Thane. So high was his credit that Arabs, Afghans and other foreign merchants chose to place their treasures in his custody rather than with banks. He soon acquired a large fortune, much of which he donated to the public. He was one of few founding members of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway along with Sir Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy and David Sasson.
Reena Saini Kallat is an Indian visual artist. She currently lives and works in Mumbai.
Balasaheb Gangadhar Khare was an Indian politician who served as the prime minister of Bombay and the first chief minister of Bombay State (1947–1952). He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India in 1954. A lawyer, solicitor and social worker by choice and politician by necessity, Khare was often described as "Sajjan", good and gentle. Khare was a scholar, an accomplished orator, and a man with no pretensions.
Gayatri Sinha is an art critic and curator based in New Delhi, India. Her primary areas of research are around the structures of gender and iconography, media, economics and social history. She founded Critical Collective, a forum for thinking about conceptual frames within art history and practice in contemporary India.
Pralhad Anant Dhond (1908–2001) was an Indian painter and art educator.
Valay Shende is a sculptor and artist. In 1999 he received his diploma in Art Teaching from Govt. Chitrakala Mahavidyalaya, Nagpur, and then he went on to train at the Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy School of Art, Mumbai, from which he graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in sculpturing in 2004. Shende later completed an artist residency at the Open 'Air' Program, Point Éphémère, Paris in 2006.His latest exhibition, Migrating Histories of Molecular Identities, shows artwork that represent situations through "the deconstruction of matter in the form of molecular discs of metal and portraits". His work has been exhibited in Mumbai at the Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, and various other cities. Shende's work has been featured in The Daily Telegraph.
Daji Bhatawadekar, was an Indian theatre personality and film and television actor. He was credited with the revival of Sanskrit and Marathi theatre in India. A winner of the Sangeet Natak Akademi award in 1965, he was honoured by the Government of India in 1967, with the award of Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award for his contributions to the society.
Thukral and Tagra are an artist duo composed of Jiten Thukral and Sumir Tagra. They work with a wide range of media including painting, sculpture, installations, interactive games, video, performance and design.
Nalini Malani is an Indian artist, among the country's first generation of video artists.
Rohini Devasher is an Indian contemporary artist.
Vikas Dilawari is an Indian conservation architect who has restored at-risk monuments and heritage buildings in Mumbai, including the Victoria Terminus, Rajabai Clock Tower, Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum, Wellington Fountain and Christ Church, Byculla. 16 restoration projects carried out by his team have been recognised by the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation, including the 2019 work on the Flora Fountain, which was designed by architect Richard Norman Shaw and completed in 1864.
Baburao Sadwelkar was an Indian painter, art writer, educator and administrator. He is known for his portraits, landscape and abstract paintings in the Impressionistic style. As an art educator, he brought a modern outlook to art education at the Sir J. J. School of Art after learning about the American art education model under a Fulbright Scholarship in 1962–63. Sadwelkar was also passionate about the art tradition of Maharashtra and the art history of the Sir J. J. School of Art. From 1975 to 1986, he served as the Director of Art for Maharashtra State where the preservation and propagation of this artistic tradition prospered under his guidance. He wrote extensively about the art and artists from the state and which are considered as important art publications.
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