Museum objects, artifacts, and archival items from the Sarmaya collection.
This picture shows the Calcutta High Court building on West Esplanade Row, as seen from across the street. In 1726 the East India Company created the Mayor’s Court, which was a court of record, to settle civil disputes. Consequently, English criminal law was also adopted and quarterly meetings were held by the Governor and five… Read more »
Built of small red bricks and with traces of extravagant ornamentation, the structure in this photograph was once the principal entrance gate to the Fort of Gaur from the north. Estimated to have been constructed in the early 15th century, the gateway is also known as Salami Darwaza, likely because salutes were fired from adjacent… Read more »
Presumably named Ekhlakhi because it is said to have cost one lakh rupees, this mausoleum in Gaur bears three tombs — considered to be those of Jalaluddin Muhammad Shah, his wife and his son. Shah was the son of Raja Ganesha, a Hindu ruler of Bengal who came to power in 1415, marking the end… Read more »
This is a photo of the Old Court House Street in Calcutta. This street lies on the eastern side of the Dalhousie Square and in this view you can see St. Andrew’s Church on the north corner of Old Court House Street and Lal Bazaar Street. This photograph is taken by Samuel Bourne in the… Read more »
The Bengal Pattachitra is a visual and oral art tradition practised by the Patuas or Chitrakars of West Bengal. They earn their livelihood by telling stories from Hindu Mythology, local folklores, Sufi tradition and contemporary themes through paintings and songs. The unfolding or playing of the Pata is called ‘Pat Khelano’, and the song through… Read more »
The Lattan Masjid or Painted Mosque of Gaur, pictured here, was once covered entirely with enameled brickwork in colours of green, yellow, blue and white. It is considered to have been built by Sultan Yusuf Shah, among the last of the Ilyas Shah rulers of Bengal in 1475, as per an inscription found in the… Read more »
Named Baiz gazi possibly because it measured 22 Bengali gaz (yards) in height, these are the remains of the old palace enclosure located within the Fort of Gaur. The wall is said to have measured 700 yards in length from north to south and 230-300 yard in breadth, encircling the royal residence. The ancient city… Read more »
The Bengal Pattachitra is a visual and oral art tradition practised by the Patuas or Chitrakars of West Bengal. They earn their livelihood by telling stories from Hindu Mythology, local folklores, Sufi tradition and contemporary themes through paintings and songs. The unfolding or playing of the Pata is called ‘Pat Khelano’, and the song through… Read more »
This photograph shows the view from the north end of Chowringhee Road, beside the carriage stand, looking north-west across the Dharmatala Tank, towards the façades of the houses along Esplanade Row. The Government House is on the extreme left. The flat-fronted building with a verandah, located behind the premises of William Coish & Co is… Read more »
This picture shows the Shyam Rai Temple, regarded as a structural beauty amongst the Bishnupur Temple Complex in West Bengal. It was built during the reign of Raghunath Singha (1626 – 1656), a Malla King who is recognised to be a patron of art and architecture. The temple is a pancharatha temple with one main… Read more »
This picture shows Kolkata’s Writers’ building facing the northern side of the square tank known as Lal Dighi. Victory in the June 1757 battle of Plassey opened up a vast majority of Northern India to the British and contributed to the emergence of Calcutta as the Imperial Capital. Fort William, in ruins, had to be… Read more »
In this picture, the General Post Office of Calcutta with its conspicuous lantern topped dome and facade supported by Corinthian pillars is seen overseeing the tank square in the foreground, known as Lal Dighi today. In 1766, Robert Clive introduced a system where zamindars and landholders were held responsible for the supply of runners to… Read more »
The ancient city of Gaur, also known as Gauda, Lakshmanavati, Lakhnauti and Jannatabad, served as the seat of many powerful dynasties over time – the Buddhist Pala kings from the 8th century onwards, the Hindu Sena kings from the 12th century on, eventually falling into the hands of the Delhi Sultanate in 1204. It thrived… Read more »
The ancient city of Gaur, also known as Gauda, Lakshmanavati, Lakhnauti and Jannatabad, served as the seat of many powerful dynasties over time – the Buddhist Pala kings from the 8th century onwards, the Hindu Sena kings from the 12th century on, eventually falling into the hands of the Delhi Sultanate in 1204. It thrived… Read more »
This painting is among the early works of Jamini Roy. Trained in European painting styles in the Government School of Bengal, Roy began his career with realistic oil portraits and post-impressionist landscapes. He produced several paintings in this style from 1905 to 1930s, but his later indigenous bent oeuvre overshadows them. One such painting in… Read more »
Jamini Roy was probably the first artist to depict Christ in an Indian vocabulary. He was looking to test the effectiveness of his bold line and flat colour technique on a subject which was remote from his personal life. Being an orthodox Hindu who had never read the old or new testaments, Roy saw the… Read more »
‘The European in India; from a collection of drawings by Charles D’Oyly, Esq. engraved by J.H. Clark and C. Dubourg; with a description by Captain Thomas Williamson; accompanied with a brief history of ancient and modern India…by F.W. Blagdon Esq.’ is a collection of English colour plates about colonial life in India, with plates after… Read more »
The Bengal Pattachitra is a visual and oral art tradition practised by the Patuas or Chitrakars of West Bengal. They earn their livelihood by telling stories from Hindu Mythology, local folklores, Sufi tradition and contemporary themes through paintings and songs. The unfolding or playing of the Pata is called ‘Pat Khelano’, and the song through… Read more »
Santhali Patas (scrolls) document the day-to-day life of the Santhals, a tribal community from Eastern India. These patas are also known as Chakshudan Pata or Jadu Pata, and the artists who create them are commonly called Jadu Patuas. These painted scrolls are closely linked to the tribe’s belief system and its diverse rites and rituals… Read more »
As the title suggests, this map is a plan of the siege of 1857 and was printed after the British recapture of Delhi, on 22nd September, 1857. This map shows Shahjahanabad prominently and precisely points to various battalions and batteries by their placement and their respective commands. The position of the British camp and the… Read more »