The Best Museums in Kolkata, India
Widely known as the cultural capital of India, Kolkata boasts several quality museums that can serve as rewarding stops during your next tour of the city. Here, we have compiled a list of the city’s most notable museums that are equipped to give you a satisfying peek into local history.
1. Indian Museum
Museum
2. Victoria Memorial
Memorial, Museum
3. Birla Industrial & Technological Museum
Museum
The Birla Industrial & Technological Museum (BITM) was founded in 1959, making it one of the oldest museums of science in the country. BITM contains 12 separate galleries that specialise in a range of topics ranging from life sciences to biotechnology. The children’s gallery is particularly popular and houses a range of learning-oriented activities geared towards kids of all ages. Other highlights at the museum include daily planetarium shows as well as a sky observatory.
5. Netaji Bhawan
Library, Memorial, Museum
Once the residence of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, an important leader of the Indian independence movement against the British, Netaji Bhawan today serves as a museum, library and research centre. The museum houses a range of photographs, personal belongings, documents and other artefacts that inform of Bose’s upbringing, education and political activities. A must-visit location for history enthusiasts, the museum preserves a unique slice of early twentieth century India.
6. Marble Palace
Building, Museum
7. Academy of Fine Arts
Art Gallery, Museum
Initially located in a room loaned by the Indian Museum following its founding in 1933, the Academy of Fine Arts shifted to its current location on Cathedral Street only in 1960. One of the oldest surviving art societies in India, it houses famous paintings by prominent artists including Gaganendranath Tagore, Jamini Roy, Nandalal Bose and Asit Halder. The museum also hosts a vibrant collection of art from previous eras including Mughal and Rajasthani works.
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