We had the prasad for lunch at the Parthasarathy Temple. After that it was time for the last destination on our agenda for the trip, the Government Museum Chennai. This museum is the second oldest one in the country. It is situated in the busy district of Egmore in the heart of the city. Our driver doubled up as the guide for our visit to the museum. There were a big number of visitors. A majority of them were school children. A visit to the museum enhances our knowledge about the past. The history of India has a rich cultural heritage. There are a number of galleries in the museum. We entered the original building at first. The present site of the museum was constructed in 1854.
Government Museum Chennai | Image Resource : panoramio.com
The museum and library benefited in a great way from the Madras Literary Society, the Records Office and the Oriental manuscripts Library. We visited the theatre in the museum which has been there since the 19th Century. In the restoration work that was done a few years back, air-conditioning system was installed in the theatre. The architecture of the theatre was inspired by the Italian style and was done by John Nash in 1802. The walls and columns of the main building had geometric and floral designs embellished on them. We saw a large number of artefacts and objects from various fields. There are items from natural history, archaeology, zoology, numismatics, and many more. We also saw Amravati paintings and palm-leaf manuscripts from the past.
Government Museum | Image Resource : wikimapia.org
During the early days, the museum also housed a zoological park. Later when the zoological park expanded in the number of animals, it was shifted to another location. During the British rule, regular theatre shows were held in the museum. The upkeep of the Government Museum Chennai is done in a very good way. The dedicated staff of the museum helps in preserving the artefacts and keeping the campus clean. We thanked our driver very much on our way to the hotel. He played an important role in making our trip a success. With this we came to the end of a very fulfilling trip.
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