subject: Salarjung Museum – The Art Legacy of a Nawab [print this page] Salarjung Museum The Art Legacy of a Nawab
Salarjung Museum of Hyderabad is not your typical South Asian art museum. Behind its massive white faade, this majestic building is home to one of the largest art collections on earth to be gathered by one man. This amazing assortment of myriad stone, marble, ivory sculptures and exquisite paintings and antique artefacts was built upon the wealth of Nawab Salar Jung III; the prime minister to the Nizam of Hyderabad in the times of the British Raj, as his personal collection.
Gathered together over the long years of the Nawab's life, the priceless works that adorns the many galleries of the museum number by the thousands and they hail from places far and wide. Publicly opened in 1951, the museum awaits the eager history buff and art enthusiasts with its 38 galleries spread over two large floors, and the artworks that you will find here dates back to the 17th century and sometimes beyond. Such a rich collection is hard to find anywhere else; Salarjung Museum is now home to more than 40000 artworks and artefacts, and among them are the likes of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb's sword, the ornate chair of Tippu Sultan of Mysore, antique furniture from Egypt, and majestic Persian carpets straight out of the Arabian nights.
Apart from the Indian and oriental artworks and sculpture, you will find that there is a significant presence of western art as well in the halls of the Salarjung Museum. In fact, there is a gallery chamber known as the European Chamber of Artefacts which houses an impressive art collection to rival a prestigious European museum. Many works of oil paintings from England, Germany, France and other European lands are on display within, and one of its most noteworthy exhibits is the world famous statue of Veiled Rebecca' by the Italian master, G.B. Benzoni. But you won't have seen everything Salarjung has to show to you until you get awestruck by the Room of Clocks, which as the name suggest is a hall full of clocks of various size, shape and origin from all over the world. The star of the Room of Clocks is the musical English clock of marvellous craftsmanship, where the charming clockwork timekeeper emerges with a gong in hand to chime away the hours every day.
Salarjung Museum plays host to a large number of local and foreign visitors every day who come to marvel at its artistic gems. Many a Hyderabad hotel you will find in the vicinity which are more than happy to be in the same neighbourhood as this institution of national importance to India. Of luxury hotels Hyderabad has no shortage, and there are many chic and classy places for you to choose from, such as the Ista Hyderabad. Visiting the Salarjung Museum during your stay in the fabled City of Pearls is a must, as nowhere else in the whole subcontinent you will find a richer collection of antique art as in this fascinating museum of Hyderabad.
