The Typology of the Museum

The Typology of the Museum

1. Introduction

Museums are the treasure house of the human civilization. It stores the memories of people worldwide, their cultures, scientific discoveries and achievements. Before modern museums established, different societies found different ways of preserving objects and collections they held important. In ancient India, Chitrashalas—painting galleries were means of education and source of enjoyment. Precious items were often deposited for safekeeping in temples, while in Europe churches sometimes preserved not only treasures, but curiosities too. In modern sense museums developed in Europe in the seventeenth century. The first use of the term ‘museum’ in English was in 1682, it described the collection of strange, rare and exotic things that Elias Ashmole gave to the University of Oxford. This is the first public museum in the world and well known as the Ashmolean Museum. After this from the private collections of countries and common people, many museums were established across the world and became the informal public educational institutions.

Ashmolean Museum of the University of Oxford

In Asia, after few decades of the establishment of the Asiatic Society in 1784 by Sir William Jones for Oriental Studies and Researches, an initiative had been taken to establish a museum. Finally, in 1814 the first museum in Asia, the Indian Museum was established in Kolkata and Dr. Nathaniel Wallich, a Danish Botanist, was the first Honorary Curator of it.

Today, museums are varying enormously. They range in size from biggest international museums like Washington’s Smithsonian Institution to the smallest one-room village museum. Museums varies in terms of diverse authorities that control them, contents and financial assistance they receive, area they serve, visitors they serve as well as their status in the country. More than five thousands museums are India now of more than hundred different types and to understand collections and services of these museums, it is very necessary to classify them for the convenience of the study.

2. Definition of Museum as stated by the International Council of Museum, in 2007

The International Council of Museums (ICOM) statues adopted by the 22nd General Assembly held in Vienna, Austria on 24 August 2007 stated the definition of museum in its article 3 para 1 as

“a museum is a non-profit, permanent institution in the service of society and its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.”

3. The Typology of museum

There are innumerous types of museums which were established for different purposes in different areas under the different administrative authorities. Based on the following parameters, museum can be classified as below:

I. Classification on the basis of collection:

Museums are commonly classified based on its nature of collection. If a museum collection has variety of objects of different fields and serves towards wide subject areas then it is called general museum or multipurpose museum. Contrarily, if the museum has collection on a specific subject, like related to archaeology, art, natural history technology etc. then museums are named accordingly. In India more than hundred types of museums are found in its different parts till date and regularly we are getting more new museums of special types established by different authorities. Some of them are stated below.

 General/multipurpose museum — the museum aims at serving general people or common people with the objects of multi knowledge. E.g. Indian

Smithsonian Institution—the biggest museum of the World

Museum, Kolkata, West Bengal, British Museum, London, United Kingdom.

Indian Museum, Calcutta

 Historical Museums (Archaeology, Art, Ethnography, Personalia or Folk Museums): All these museums dealing with the collections of the past are known as Historical Museums. It need not be emphasized that all these collections being related to man and his environment are generally inter related to each other. There can hardly any sharp line demarking all the distinct types. The objects of history and Archaeology or Ethnographical and folk museums may be found overlapping. An object of art may be equally important for historical value, being apart its aesthetic merits. A history museum play vital role in contributing to the cultural and intellectually life of the society. For example -

o Archaeological Museum, Halebid, Karnataka

o National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi

o Nagaland State Museum, Kohima, Nagaland

 Site Museums: The site museum is merely the objects acquired through the excavation of a single site. They represent the history and life of a particular group of people in a locality. Of the site museums, the one at Saranath dates back to 1904 and that the Nalanda cave into existence in 1917. Later the Museums sprang up at Mohenjo-Daro, Harappa and Taxila. All these were the creation of Sir John Marshall. The latest type of museums is of Tipu’s Relics at Srirangapatnam, organized by the Archaeological Survey of India.

o Natural History Museum: Natural History museums represent the objects from nature including flora, fauna and their co-existence maintaining through ecosystems. Natural history museum generally focuses of the local or national flora and fauna. In India various natural history society and Zoological Survey of India established some natural history museums.

e.g. Natural History Museum of the Bombay Natural History Society, Mumbai, Maharastra

 Industrial and Technological Museum: Industrial and Technological museums consists several models, participatory exhibits, essential for the purpose of science communication through enjoyment to students and common people.

e.g. Birla Industrial and Technological Museum, Kolkata, West Bengal

Victory Technical Institute Museum, Chennai etc.

II. Classification on the basis of who run the museum:

Museums are run by different governments, institutions, organizations etc. based on that museums are classified and named. These museums may exhibit objects of multiple disciplines like the Indian Museum Kolkata, Government Museum, Chennai or may be oriented to single subject only like museums under the respective surveys of India like all archeological site museums, under the Archaeological Survey of India, museum under the Anthropological Survey of India e.g. Manav Sangrahalya Jagdalpur, Chattisgarh and Mysore, Karnatka etc. Here below the different museums those fall under this category

 Government Museum

 Central Government Museum: The Ministries of Culture and few other Ministries of the Government of India directly or indirectly financed and look after the administration of some museums. e. g National Museum, New Delhi, under the Ministry of Culture, Government of India.

 State Government Museum: The State Museum is administered and financed by the respective State Government. Such institutions exist mainly in the capital cities of the states and mainly responsible to preserve and represent the heritage of the respective state. The Government Museum in Madras (now in Chennai) is the largest and oldest of the State Museums in India. Founded in 1851 as a Museum of Geology, it had developed into a large multipurpose museum with several sections, among these the Archaeological section of the museum is the chief centre of attraction. Another museum is the Odisha State Museum, Bhubaneswar.

 Municipality Museums: Municipalities of few metro or big cities have taken responsibility of some museums in its jurisdiction. These municipalities financed and administered the museums and thus those museums are called Municipality Museum. Though in many cases museums are well known by their respective names only. It may owe its origin and existence to private donations, excavations or the acquisitions made by the local authority in order to maintain its Civic Pride. There are many municipal museums in India, but the largest is the Allahabad museum in Uttar Pradesh. The State Museum, Lucknow starting as a Municipal museum in 1863, it gained provincial status in 1883. The main collections devoted to natural history, ethnology, paintings, drawings, coins, manuscripts arms and weapons are exhibited in several galleries of the Lal Baradari and at Kaisarbagh. Another example Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum under the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, Maharastra.

 School / College / University Museum: these museums are financed and administered by the respective school/College/Universities. These museums are specialized in character and intended to supplement courses of study by providing pertinent examples of their subject matter. Intended primarily for scholars and students, such museums may be little importance to the general public. E.g. The Ashutosh Museum of Indian Art, University of Calcutta, Kolkata, West Bengal

 Military/Defense museums : Army, Navy and Airforce run many museums on their artifacts, achievements, weapons etc. e.g. Madras Regiment Museum, Coonoor, Tamilnadu

 Registered Society Museum: Most of the big museums of the past are products the collecting activities of same kind or other intellectual or philanthropic society. These museums were promoted by the societies. e.g. Natural History Museum under the Bombay Natural History Society, Mumbai, Maharastra

 Museums under the Board of Trustees: Some museums administered by an incorporated body under the Board of Trustees. The Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad and Indian Museum, Kolkata have been made institutions of National importance under board of trustees and thus have a measure of autonomy.

 Museum under Trust: e.g. National Gandhi Museum at Rajghat, New Delhi managed or run by the Gandhi Smarak Nidhi (Gandhi Memorial Trust),.

 Temple Museum: The Indian temple always been a great institution for the cultural, economic, social, educational in addition to the local folk and acted more or less a museum. Museums also attached to larger temples of South India. —e. g. Swaminarayan Museum, Ahmedabad, Gujrat

 Private museum: Many individuals, royal families, corporate societies or private collectors have established museums on their collection or possessions. e.g. Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum, Pune, Maharastra

 Museums under Industries: Arts and crafts sections and objects of Industrial value have had a conspicuous place among such exhibits. There have been cases also of museums developing purely as industrial. e.g. Calico Museum of Textiles and Srarabhai Foudation, Ahmedabad, Gujrat under Calico Mills of Ahmedabad

 Survey run museums: Every survey runs museums on their specific subjects at their regional centers across India. Archaeological Survey of India runs maximum number of Archaeological as well as site museums in various cities and sites. Anthropological, Zoological, Botanical, Geological Surveys of India also have many museums in different parts of India. E.g. Marine Museum of the Zoological Survey of India, Portblair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands

 Museums under the National Council of Science Museums: The need for science museums with elaborate equipment and instructive material both for specialized study and for popular enlighten has been felt such museums have been organized. The Birla Industrial and Technological Museum, Kolkata, the National Science Centre, New Delhi etc. are under the NCSM

II. Classification on the basis of the area they serve :

Sometimes the importance of museums is established as per the area it is dedicated to serve. Like museums that represent the entire nation or region or states etc. On the basis of their stated objectives, the museums may be classified into following types:

 National Museums—A National museum represents, the cultural and artistic growth of a country from the earliest to the recent past, drawn from all part of the country, carefully chosen examples of high quality which stands as an introduction to the entire country. The National Museum thus assumes its fully national role. Other than national objects national museum may also collect foreign objects for the study and research on the Indian association or influence on the respective countries. For example, the National Museum, New Delhi, National Gallery of Modern Art, National Telecom Museum etc.

National Museum, New Delhi

National Science Centre, New Delhi

 Regional Museum—Regional Museums generally established to present and exhibit the heritage of the respective region. Regional Museums are commonly formed on Natural History or Physical Sciences. e.g. Regional Museum of Natural History, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, Regional Science Centre, Guwahati etc.

 State Museum—Principal museum in every state financed and administered by the respective State Government. It is designated as State Museum by the State government. These museums exist mainly in the capital cities of the respective state. These museums collect, preserve and exhibit objects of cultural heritage, scientific heritage and natural heritage of the State. These museums may be multipurpose in nature or may confine to specific subjects only. Like, Assam State Museum, Guwahati—a multipurpose museum and State Archaeological Museum, Kolkata is an Archaeological or History Museum. Many of Indian states have their State Museum.

 District Museum—Like State Museum, many districts has their district museums, which are run by the respective State Government and designated as District Museum by the State Government. In India frequency of district museum is more in the North-Eastern States especially in Arunanchal Pradesh, where dialects change in every one kilometer along with the existence of different tribes and sub-tribes. These museums are basically Anthropology museum that represents the cultural heritage of the tribes of that district. e.g. District Museum, Zero, Arunachal Pradesh

 Rural Museum—some museums in the name of rural museum are in India not necessarily located at the rural area but preserve the rural heritage of particular area or rural India. e.g. Sanskriti Museum, Meharauli, New Delhi.

 Local Museum— some local museums are in India that focuses on the local issues, heritage and resources. There are some local museums which are under local Panchayat, Coal India Ltd. Private organization, Tea Garden, Coffee garden etc. Like Coal Heritage Museum of the Coal India Ltd. in Assam, Coffe Museum in Arrakku, Andhra Pradesh etc.

IV. Classification based on visitors they serve:

Sometimes museums are developed to serve targeting specified visitors. This kind of museums has scope to disseminated information specific to the probable demand of its target group. On the basis of it, museums may be classified as follows:

 General museum - e.g. the museum aims at serving general people or common people irrespective of their knowledge and subject of interest. E.g. Indian Museum, Kolkata, West Bengal

 Educational museum: Various school/college/university museums fall under this category. They collect materials of a wide range of subjects, like history, science, medicine etc. for example Pathology Museum of the Medical College Kolkata, West Bengal

Pathology Museum of Manipal Medical College, Manipal, Karnataka

 Specialized museum: this category of museum can be classified further into two types:

 Museum for Specially Challenged Group—No such museums are in India, established yet.

 Children Museum—Few museums are in India specially established for children, like Shankar International Dolls Museum, New Delhi.

III. Classification based on the way they exhibit their collection :

Museum exhibits its objects in different ways to make people understand and enjoy the inner meaning of the exhibition and display. Considering the mode of exhibition of collection as the main criteria of the establishment, museums can be categories as:

 Traditional museum—these museums are housed within a building either constructed for the purpose of the museum or housed in an old building and accommodate its exhibits and display area as per the available space. They serve for common people in a conventional way. For example Indian Museum, Kolkata, West Bengal.

 Open-air museum—Sometimes objects or parts of monuments, excavated sites are displayed in situ and whatever available in its original forms is displayed, these are called open-air museum. Sometimes tribal habitats are recreated in its actual size dwelling houses, depicting the sources of livelihood and exhibited open-air. For example Indira Gandhi Rastriya Manav Sangrahalaya, Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.

Open-air habitat development of ethnic group in the Rastriya Manav Sangrahalaya

 Historic house museum—these are the museum which housed within the historical monuments like forts and palaces to retrospect the history of the site with real evidences. Like Mehrangarh Fort Museum, Jodhpur, Rajasthan

 Period room museum—sometimes museum depicts a particular historic period through the exhibiting of the related objects of that period. For example Egyptian Pyramids, Summer Palace of Tipu Sultan etc.

 Personalia Museum—In memory of the important personalities, many personalia museums are established with the objective of understanding his/her meaningful life in the building where the great person had spent his/her life. For example: Rabindra Bharati museum at the ancestral home and the birth place of Rabindranath Tagore, Kolkata, West Bengal.

 Biographic museum—there are many museums in India established on great personalities their association with a set of people, or the collection of an individual in a building not related with him/her but dedicated to them. Such museums are often named after the person. For example Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalaya, Barrackpore, West Bengal.

 Memorial museum- This is the category of museum, which established on the memory of a person. For example Victoria Memorial, Kolkata, West Bengal

Victoria Memorial, Kolkata

 Virtual museum- Now a good number of museums are constructed on web using information technology, which has no relation with its real existence. These are called Virtual Museum. For example Monetary Museum of the Reserve Bank of India

IV. Para museums :

Apart from in-house museums as defined by the ICOM, there are many historical sites; monuments, natural resources etc. serve like a museum in preserving the heritage, endangered species in the service of the society. According to ICOM definition 2001 these are also qualifying as museums. At present these are called Para Museums. These include:

 natural, archaeological and ethnographic monuments and sites and historical monuments and sites of a museum nature that acquire, conserve and communicate material evidence of people and their environment

 institutions holding collections of and displaying live specimens of plants and animals, such as botanical and zoological gardens, aquaria and vivaria

 science centres and planetaria

 non-profit art exhibition galleries

 nature reserves; conservation institutes and exhibition galleries permanently maintained by libraries and archives centers; natural parks;

 non-profit institutions or organisations undertaking conservation research, education, training, documentation and other activities relating to museums and museology;

 cultural centers and other entities that facilitate the preservation, continuation and management of tangible or intangible heritage resources (living heritage and digital creative activity);

4. Summary

Everyday new museums are established across India on new themes, subject areas, adopting new techniques of presentation. Even museum are now established having no real objects or any objects at all only based on the philosophy, technology, virtual reality etc. Like a museum was established on Mahatma Gandhi, well known as Eternal Gandhi, here no original objects are in display but the philosophies of Mahatma Gandhi are beautifully presented with the help of technology.

Owing to the recent scientific and technological advancement the nature and scope of the museums have expanded greatly. There are museums of pure and applied science, or firm may carry out its educational programme by exhibiting the evolution of a particular branch of knowledge from its primitive stage to the most modern advances.

To understand the nature of museum, thus it is very essential to classify museum under the specified categories to identify its type.

The Typology of the Museum-2

1. Introduction

India is the country with diverse natural and cultural heritage unique to the world. The country is the witness of the existence of prehistoric human settlements; the rise and fall of many civilizations and royal powers; emergence and extinction of many flora and fauna, as well as the development of science and technology since the days immemorial. India is the land of great personalities who contributed immensely in the freedom of India, discovery and development of science, technology, art, architecture, literature and culture. The rich socio-cultural heritage of India can be characterized under two categories material and non-material or tangible and intangible heritage. In tangible heritage we see old remnants, archaeological sites, art, crafts, manuscripts and many more. Intangible heritage includes traditions, music, dance, literature, folklores, fables, rites, rituals, festivals etc. In such a country museums play an important role in preserving and exhibiting the heritage for the knowledge of mankind. No one type or category of museum is enough for portraying the heritage and thus more than hundred types of museums are in India now those preserve and exhibit the diversity of heritage.

2. National Museums

Government of India has established many museums as National Museums that represent the nation or national collection on the subject it is concerned. Many of such museums are in New Delhi and few are scattered throughout India. Like, National Museum; National Gallery of Modern Art; National Science Centre; National Museum of Natural History; National Telecom Museum; National Library; National Archive; National Craft Museum etc. Here is the brief history of the establishment and collection of the National Museum.

2.1 National Museum, New Delhi

The National Museum was formally inaugurated by Shri. C.Rajagopalachari, the Governor – General of India, on the auspicious occasion of 15th August 1949. The Museum presently holds approximately 2,00,000 objects of a diverse nature, both Indian as well as foreign origin, and its holdings cover a time span of more than five thousand years of Indian cultural heritage. All the collections are displayed through different galleries on Harappan Civilisation, Archaeology, Buddhist Art, Indian Miniature Paintings, Evolution of Indian Scripts and Coins, Central Asian Antiquity, Coins, Indian Textiles, Pre-Columbian and Western Art, Wood Carving, Musical Instruments, Tribal Lifestyle of North-East India, Arms

and Amours and Temple Chariots. They develop new galleries and also run regular exhibitions on different subjects as per need time to time. Among the important collections the museum has the dancing doll of Mohenjo-Daro, sacred relics of the Buddha (5th-4th century B.C.), miniatures of Mughal, Deccani, Central Indian, Rajasthani, Pahari schools of the period from 1000 A.D. to 1900 A.D.

3. Museums of the National Importance

A few old, unique and important museums are in India, which are administered by the respective Board of Trustees and not directly under the control of the Ministry of Culture. Government of India has declared these museums as museum of National Importance. These are

 Indian Museum, Kolkata—Oldest museum in India;

 Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad—largest one man collection,

 Chattrapati Sivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai,

 Indira Gandhi Rastriya Manav Sangrahalaya, Bhopal etc.

3.1. Indian Museum, Kolkata

The Indian Museum is the museum of National Importance in Kolkata was founded in 1814. It is the earliest and the largest multipurpose Museum not only in the Indian subcontinent but also in the Asia-Pacific region of the world. At present there are twenty seven galleries under the six sections on Art, Archaeology, Anthropology, Geology, Zoology and Botany. The famous Bharhut remains are in the possession of this museum. The museum which was known in the beginning as the “Asiatic Society Museum” subsequently came to be known as the “Imperial Museum” later familiarized as the “Indian Museum”. The museum is more familiar by the name Jadughar or Ajabghar among the visitors.

4. General/Multipurpose Museum

In general museum, different types of collections are gathered in the same place. In majority of cases, these museums came into being in the 19th century. Some of them originated from private collections. In big museums, collections are divided into a number of sections. Broad divisions are made in arts and science and under them various subsections. In such cases, specimens of arts, archaeology, numismatics, epigraphy, painting, manuscripts, arms and armours, decorative arts, textiles, natural history, etc. are included within its scope balancing uniform development of each discipline. Under science division galleries are made on Zoology, Botany, Anthropology, Geology etc.

National Museum, New Delhi

There are large numbers of general museums in India like

 The Indian Museum, Kolkata, which is the first multipurpose museum in this country as well as in the South Asia.

 Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad, showcases Indian Art, Far Eastern art, European Art, Middle Eastern art, children’s section etc. Apart from this, a gallery is devoted to the celebrated Salar Jung family.

 The Maharaja Chhatrapati Sivaji Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai consists of different sculptures from Indus Valley Civilization, Gandhara and medieval periods, Indian miniature paintings, Tibetan and Nepalese arts, European Paintings and decorative arts etc.

5. Art Museum

The art museums are those institutions or buildings in which paintings, sculptures and decorative art objects are exhibited. Art Galleries, Portrait galleries, Modern Art museums, Folk lore museums, crafts museums etc. are fall under this category.

5.1. Art Gallery: It is generally halls and cluster off rooms, specially designed for temporary or permanent art exhibitions. For example,

 Sri Jayachamarajendra Art Gallery in Mysore, exhibits glass paintings, oil paintings, paintings of Raja Ravi Verma, Company paintings etc.

 The Sri Chitra Art Gallery in Thiruvananthapuram exhibits modern Indian paintings, Indo-European paintings of Raja Ravi Verma, Svetlova and Nichoas Roerich, the Mughal, Rajasthani and Tanjore Paintings, the Chinese, Japanese, Tibet and Bali etc.

 The Jehangir Art Gallery in Mumbai exhibits contemporary paintings.

 The National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi exhibits contemporary arts productions and outdoor life-size sculpture exhibitions.

 The Bharat Bhawan, Bhopal is a multi-cultural art centre set up to create an interaction within the verbal, visual and performing arts.

5.2. Portrait Gallery: There are many portrait gallery in India established to collect and exhibit portraits of persons who had a distinct role in the history of a country.

Chhatrapati Sivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai

Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad

 The Archaeological Museum and Portrait Gallery, Goa, has a gallery devoted to portraits on wood and canvas. Visitors can have a glance at the short history of the Governors and Viceroys of Goa.

5.3. Folk Art Museum: It possess collection that amply reflect the vigour and vitality of the rural life along with a vivid picture of social traditions, religious beliefs, practices, motifs and their aesthetic and cultural influences among the rural folk. Folk art comprises of art forms made of clay, wood, bamboo, leather, bark, bone, horn etc.

 The Bharatiya Lok Kala Mandal Museum, Udaipur has an interesting collection of folk arts comprising dresses, dolls, masks, musical instruments and paintings.

5.4. Craft Museum: India has good number of Craft museum.

 The National Craft Museum, New Delhi contains a collection of traditional Indian crafts in textiles, metal, wood and ceramics.

 The Gurusaday Museum in Kolkata preserves and exhibits the folk arts of rural Bengal including the objects collected from undivided Bengal.

 There are some specialized craft museums too in India like Kite Museum, Utensil Museum and Textile Museum in Ahmedabad.

6. History Museum

This category of museums is set up with a view to preserve and exhibit the relics of the ancient world recovered from the surface or beneath the soil, pertaining to the historical and cultural heritage.

6.1. Archaeological Museum: the prehistoric and proto historic phases of art and culture are exemplified by statuary art, pottery, tools, coins, minor objects and other treasures of the past, which seem to have witnessed evolutionary changes and also landmarks of aesthetic trends in the context of cultural development. In India, the number of archaeological museums excels other types of museums.

6.2. Site Museum: the site museums are a special type of archaeological ‘museums in situ’ that houses loose dismantled antiquities, relics and other forms of collections found from the adjacent excavation or exploration sites. These museums are established to preserve the small and movable antiquities recovered from the site and to retain them in proper environment. For example

 The Sarnath Museum, adjacent to the Sarnath Monastery excavated site that preserves and exhibits the objects found from the sites including the ‘Four Lion Capitol’—the National Emblem of India.

Bharat Lok Kala Mandal, Udaipur

6.3. Defense Museum: in defense museum, various things related to military activities of the Army, Navy and Air force are exhibited. In such museums, histories of the war years, accounts of war personnel and divisions, medals, peace accords, anti-conscription documents, used tanks, air craft’s, weapons etc. are preserves and exhibited. These museums are controlled separately by the Indian Army or the Indian Air Force or the Indian Navy. For examples,

 Museum of Madras Regiment in Coonoor, Tamilnadu;

 Air Force Museum in Palam and Shilong;

 Naval Aviation Museum, Goa.

6.4 Transport Museum

Transport museums cover railway museums and maritime museums.

Rail Museums: this is a special type of history museum aiming at preserving the heritage of railway of a country. It usually preserves and exhibits vintage engines, historical records and documents, history of the development of railways, signaling system etc.

 The National Rail Museum, New Delhi is the first of its kind in India. It has both indoor and outdoor collections.

 The Mysore Railway Museum is located adjacent to the Mysore Rail Station.

In both the museums visitors has the entertainment opportunity to ride toy trains.

Maritime Museum: After the Second World War the concept of the maritime museum has emerged with a view to safeguard the maritime heritage of a country. This museum preserves and exhibits various types of seafaring boats and ships, objects from wreckage found at the bottom of the sea or on sand banks, semaphores, lighthouses, pictures, various equipment and accessories required for voyages etc. It also highlights the modern activities and different issues.

 The National Maritime Museum, Mumbai has been set up by the Indian Navy at the natural harbor of Mumbai. The museum houses the historical treasures of India and models of ships built in Mumbai.

Madras Regiment Army Museums

Air force Museum, Shilong

National Emblem at Sarnath Site Museum

6.5. Police Museum

The museum commemorates the history of origin, development and activities of the Police.

 The Kolkata Police Museum revives the interface of the colonial Police and Indian nationalism during the freedom movement of India.

 The National Police Museum, New Delhi, exhibits national and international significance related to Police, crime and criminals from the ancient to modern times.

6.6. Personalia Museum

In memoriam of important personalities, personalia museums are founded with the aim of understanding his/her meaningful life that was contributory to the progress of his/ her country or the world at large. These museums are generally established within the building where the great person had spent some times of his life.

 The Netaji Museum in Kolkata exhibits photographs, original letters, manuscripts and documents concerning Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The Museum is house in his home in Kolkata.

Kolkata Police Museum

Netaji Bhawan, Kolkata

Gandhi Smriti, New Delhi

National Rail Museum, New Delhi

National Maritime Museum, Mumbai

6.7 Biographical Museum

Biographical Museums are established on the collection of objects related to the great person in a new building but mostly at the place where they were born or breathed their last or worked for some time. Such museum always depicts the life, philosophy and activities of a great personality.

 There is a chain of museums referred to as the Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalaya established throughout the country, dedicated to the memory of the Father of Indian Nation.

6.8 Memorial Museum

Memorial museums are established to commemorate a great historic personality or event. Here, along with personal relics other objects are also displayed. The said museums is not necessary established in a building in which the person concerned had lived.

 In the memory of Queen Victoria, the Victoria Memorial in Kolkata is established.

6.9 Period House Museum

To display historical objects of certain time, period museums are established. This category includes palace museum, fort museum and place connected with important personalities or historic events. To make the period vivid to the visitors some museums use music, Son et Lumiere or theatrical performance.

6.10 Fort Museum

When a fort is transformed into a museum to enliven the past it is called fort museum. The building itself is a place of visit. Inside the fort, some collections of objects of art and antiquity may also be preserved. In India, a number of fort museums exist like

 Ajmer Fort,

 Mehrangarh Fort,

 Junagarh Fort,

 Chittor Fort in Rajasthan,

 Agra Fort in Uttar Pradesh,

 Red Fort in New Delhi etc.

6.11 Palace Museum

Like forts, there are number of palaces throughout India, which are now converted into museums and open to public for their visit. Such museums display luxurious and valuable objects of arts and artefacts of the royal family. Like,

∙ Sawai Man Singh II Museum, Jaipur,

∙ City Palace Museum, Jodhpur,

∙ Mysore Palace, Mysore,

∙ Coochbihar Palace Museum, West Bengal etc.

6.12 Jail Museum

When a jail or dungeon bearing historical importance is converted into a museum to enliven the past, is called Jail Museum. The Cellular Jail in Port Blair established in 1906, is a testimonial to the martyrs of Indian freedom stands a mute spectator to the tortures and declared as National Memorial by the Government of India. The Cornel Wally’s Dungeon at Srirangapatna is also a visitors’ point of attraction.

7. Achieves and Library

The term ‘archives’ derived from the Greek work ‘arkheia’ is a repository of various types of records. Official or government documents, collected papers, books, maps, sound recordings, microfilms, microfiche, motion pictures, reprographic copies etc. forms ‘archives’. Governments, institutions or individuals preserve records for their future use forming archives. The National Archives, New Delhi; State Archives, Central Record Office etc. are the examples of archives.

Libraries also preserve books, manuscripts, journals etc. for the use of common people. Museums too have libraries to serve interested people. Mention may be made of the Raja Library at Rampur, Uttar Pradesh, which is one of the earliest and opulent manuscript libraries of Oriental learning. The Khuda Baksh Oriental Library in Patna is an institute of national importance for its huge collections including more the 4000 manuscripts. The National Library, Kolkata is also one of the important libraries in India. Hindi Sangrahalaya at Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, Allahabad is an important library museum.

8. Mass-Media Museum

The mass media serve an essential purpose in making people concern of policies and activities of Governments and discussing them in the context of nation building affairs. In India mass-media museum skillfully highlights the modern print media i.e. newspapers and audiovisual media i.e. radio or television and satellite communication.

Newspaper Museum

In India one of such museum is Madhav Rao Sapre Smriti Samachar Patra Sangrahalaya and Research Institute, Bhopal. It has collections of newspapers and periodicals since 1681 and some research papers.

Broadcast Museum

A Radio Museum is established by the “All India Radio”, at Broadcasting House in New Delhi. Here recorded voice of national leaders and music of eminent singers along with the developmental history of All India Radio are preserved and exhibited.

National Archive Museum, New Delhi

Khuda Baksh Oriental Library, Patna

Radio Museum of the All India Radio, New Delhi

9. Telecom Museum

The National Telecom Museum, Bhopal is a unique and first of its kind in India that exhibits the evolution of the telephone. It displays different types of instruments used since the existence of telecommunication like first telegraph system and out-of-date telephone exchange, stamps, first day covers, visiting books, clock, rare displays of SOS Telegram sent by Commanders of East India Company during 1857 revolution, first satellite earth station of the world etc. The Museum is an excellent combination of obsolete and modern communication mechanism that have helped humanity to bring the world closer.

10. Postal Museum

India has few Postal Museum that exhibits the ancient tradition or runner system for delivering postal items, stamps, equipments etc. It exhibits our heritage of sending messages through writing in postcards, inland letters and airmails. The Postal Museum in Mysore is an excellent example of its kind. It is situated in the Postal Training Institute in Mysore in the Karanji Manson—one of the heritage palaces of Mysore.

11. Museum of Hobby

Museums of hobby have been built with the materials with a view to create and foster hobbies among people.

Philatelic Museum

Philatelic Museum preserves and exhibits stamps for the people of philatelic interest. India has few such museums housed in the Post Offices. Like the National Philatelic Museum, New Delhi in Dak Bhawan and exhibits extensive stamp collection. The Postal Museum and Philatelic Library was established in Kolkata in 1979 in the General Post Office, Kolkata and has huge collection of stamps of early British period notaries service postage, count fee stamps, postal notes, pre and post independence stamps, envelop and postcards etc.

Mountaineering Museum

Nowadays, mountaineering and trekking are considered as a unique hobby. The Himalayan Mountaineering Institute has established a museum on Everest and Mountaineering in Darjeeing, West Bengal. The museum exhibits colourful relief model of the Himalayas, mountaineering dresses and equipment, clubs all over the world. Flags and pennants planted on the peaks by Indian mountaineers, photographs etc.

Postal Museum, Mysore

National Telecom Museum, Bhopal

Numismatic Museum

The art of gathering and studying coins, other currency and medals is known as numismatics. A coin museum collects and exhibits coinage of a certain region or period. Many museums have numismatic galleries but museums solely on numismatics are also in India. Among them the Coin Museum in Nasik, Maharashtra; Currency Museum of the State Bank of India in Kolkata are important.

12. Science Museums

12.1 Natural History Museum

The museum deals with our natural world. It consists of different aspects of science like taxonomy (classification and nomenclature of living or fossil organism), biology (botanical, zoological, paleontological specimens), marine biology and taxidermies. Here specimens are exhibited depicting their natural habitat through various dioramas and fabricated objects. India has many natural history museums like..

o Regional Natural History Museum, Bhubaneswar and Mysore,

o Bengal Natural History Museum, Darjeeling etc.

12.2 Eco museum

India is the land of cultural and natural diversity. Eco museums are the best medium to explain and advocate sensitive conservational practices relating to environmental issues. They are established in an ecological setting like forests, national parks, water lands, tribal areas etc. for realistic approaches. Like Rarh Sanskriti Sangrahalaya, Midnapur in West

National Philatelic Museum, New Delhi

Museum of the Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, Darjeeling, West Bengal

Regional Natural History Museum, Bhubaneswar

Bengal. The museum preserves the locally available materials and focuses on tribal life and culture.

12.3 Marine Museum

The Indian subcontinent is flanked on its eastern and western sides by long coastal line along the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea respectively. Apart from the mainland India has many islands and a number of marine museums are located in these areas.

 In Port Blair there is Samudrika—an excellent marine museum that displays various aspects of local marine biology.

 The Marine Biology Museum of the Centre of Advanced Study in Marine Biology, Annamalai University exhibits marine organism.

12.4 Zoological Museum

Zoological museums include the fauna of a region or country i.e. stuffed animals, fossil remains of animals, physical process of life of animals, skeleton etc. Generally, Zoology departments of universities have this kind of museums for educational purposes.

 The Zoology Museums of the University of Calcutta, the Punjab University, and University of Gorakhpur are of this kind.

 Zoological Survey of India also runs few museums in its different regions.

12.5 Botanical Museum

The flora of the country, i.e. plants specimens, herbarium sheets, fossils of tree, fruits, seed, crops, medicinal plants, economical important plants etc. are preserved and exhibited in botanical museums. Like Zoology Museums, many Botany departments of various Universities have Botany museums. Botanical Survey of India also runs many Botanical Museums in its different regions. Like,

 Museum of Botany department of the Punjab University,

 Museum of the Birbal Sahani Institute of Palaeo-botany Lucknow etc.

12.6 Forest Museum

The museum are established to give applied education on arboriculture on various field of forestry, forest biology, wild life, timber and its uses, etc. The Forest Museum situated in Portblair offers an insight into forest activities through scaled models and decorative pieces made of locally available woods.

 There are many Forest Museums across India like in Shivapuri, Madhya Pradesh; Guwahati, Assam etc.

Marine Museum, Portblair

Forest Museum, Portblair

12.7 Industrial and Technological Museum

Under the direct influence of the Industrial Revolution in the eighteen century, industrial and technological museums were established throughout Europe. In India, it is flourished during 20th Century mostly under the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM). The Birla Industrial and Technological Museum, Kolkata is the first of its kind in India. The Museum exhibits models on various branches of physical science, original instruments of scientific importance, mock-up models, multimedia presentations, 3D shows etc.

 The Vishveshwaraya Industrial and Technological Museum, Bengaluru is the 2nd of its kind portrays the application of science and technology in industry and human welfare.

12.8 Science Centre

In science centers, effective non-formal education is imparted to support formal science education. They create science consciousness among common people. These centers are also under the NCSM.

 The Science City, Kolkata; National Science Centre, New Delhi, Nehru Science, Mumbai are of this kind.

 All these centers communicates science through participatory exhibits, working models, time machine shows, 3D-7D shows, audio-visuals, science talk shows etc.

12.9 Anthropological Museum/Ethnological Museum

Man cannot be assessed without the accompaniment of community, as every man is a single one of its entirety. Anthropological museum collects materials to present the story of the evolution of man showing their cognitive, cultural and socio-economic changes, social behavior, livelihood etc. Anthropology museums are often called Ethnology museum, where science of human race and their relations to one another, pattern of community life are in centre.

The Indira Gandhi Rastriya Manav Sangrahalaya, Bhopal has been conceptualized as an organic whole, dedicated to unfold the story of human highlighting human biological evolution and cultural patterns in India. The museum has constructed open-air tribal dwellings. In India after archaeological museums, anthropological museums are second in position in terms of its number.

Birla Industrial and Technological Museum, Kolkata

Panaroma Show on Evolution of Man in the Science City, Kolkata

13. Specialized Museums

In India, where multifaceted cultural heritage is sustained by museums, there it may be expected that some specialized museums must be existed. Based on some special themes, these museums are categorized as specialized museum.

13.1Temple Museum

India is full of temples and monasteries and religion exerts tremendous influence on the Indian life and culture. Immensely, precious ornaments, gems and other valuables are in the temple’s possessions. Some of the temples preserve vast collection of illustrated manuscripts for the use of the scholars. The Indian temple always been a great institution for the cultural, economic, social, educational in addition to the local folk and acted more or less a museum. It is for that reason, temple museums have grown up. Museums also attached to larger temples of South India. Some of these museums are Rajaraja Museum in Brihadeswar Temple, Sri Venkateswara Museum, Tirupati, Sri Minakshi Sundareswaram

Temple Museum at Madurai etc.

13.2 Peace Museum

Man is generally peace-loving. In social and political life conflicts, strife and wars are in existence since time immemorial. Side by side, ideals of non-violence and peaceful life are preached and practiced. Peace museum includes a range of different museums. It includes issues of regional peace, the global importance of the “League of Nations”, “museums of non-violence” and the quest for peace “within people”. It can be said that any museum, which focuses on peace issues, has the mission to serve as a “museum of peace”. An

Tribal Dwelling in the Indira Gandhi Rastriya Manav Sangrahalaya, Bhopal

Ethnography Museum, Udaipur

Sri Venkateswara Museum on Temple Art, Tirupati

Peace Museum, Mount Abu, Rajasthan

example of such museums is the Peace Museum, Mount Abu, Rajasthan established by the Brahma Kumaris Spiritual University and Museum. It teaches that all religions led to God and the belief of each should be considered. It points at institution of world harmony through ‘the importance of spiritual knowledge and training of easy raja yoga meditation’

14 Summary

In India endless types of museums are present and also coming day by day looking at the expected people’s demand. Going away from the mandate of museum, as non-profit making permanent institutions for the preservation of heritage many of present day museums are developing focusing on commercial interest with or without any real or antique objects. This new generation museums are drawing more attention of visitors serving them as per their need. One of such new trend of museums is Mother Wax Museum in Kolkata that exhibits wax models of national leaders, eminent personalities, actors, sportsmen etc. similar to Madam Tussauds Museum, London and Bangkok. Sports Museums are also drawing attention of sports lovers and many such museums are already established in India. Indian diversities reflect vividly through the multiplicity of its museums in its every corner.