Government Museum, Mathura

Government Museum, Mathura

File:Government Museum - Mathura 2013-02-23 5014.JPG Front view of the Museum in Mathura
Established	1874
Location	Mathura
Key holdings	Mudgarpani Agnipani Parkham Yaksha Mathura Herakles Isapur Yūpa Saptarishi Tila statue Bhutesvara Yakshis
Founder	Frederic Growse
Director	Shiv Prashad Singh

Government Museum, Mathura, commonly referred to as Mathura museum, is an archaeological museum in Mathura city of Uttar Pradesh state in India. The museum was founded by then collector of the Mathura district, Sir F. S. Growse in 1874. Initially, it was known as Curzon Museum of Archaeology, then Archaeology Museum, Mathura, and finally changed to the Government Museum, Mathura.

Overview

File:The archeological museum, Mathura, India 1949.jpg

The museum in 1949

The museum houses artifacts pottery, sculptures, paintings, and coins primarily from in and around Mathura, plus discoveries made by noted colonial archaeologists like Alexander Cunningham, F. S. Growse, and Fuhrer. The museum is famous for ancient sculptures of the Mathura school dating from 3rd century BC to 12th century AD., during Kushan Empire and Gupta Empire. today it is one of the leading museums of Uttar Pradesh.

The Government of India issued a postage stamp on 9 October 1974 on the centenary of the museum.

Notable collections

See also: Art of Mathura, Kushan art, and Gupta art

• Archaic Mother Goddess, Prehistory, 4th Century BCE
  Archaic Mother Goddess, Prehistory, 4th Century BCE
• 3000-year-old anthropomorphic copper figure (ACCN 93-51) found at Shahabad, UP
  3000-year-old anthropomorphic copper figure (ACCN 93-51) found at Shahabad, UP
• Parkham Yaksha, 150 BCE[4]
  Parkham Yaksha, 150 BCE
• Mudgarpani Yaksha, 100 BCE[5]
  Mudgarpani Yaksha, 100 BCE
• Seated Bodhisattva, 1st century CE[6][7]
  Seated Bodhisattva, 1st century CE
• Jain chaumukha sculpture with Suparshvanatha and Three Other Tirthankaras, 1st century
  Jain chaumukha sculpture with Suparshvanatha and Three Other Tirthankaras, 1st century
• Jain Ashtamangala, 1st century
  Jain Ashtamangala, 1st century
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Ayagapata, Jain Tablet, 1st Century
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Naigamesha Jain god of Childbirth, 1st-3rd century CE.
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Parshvantha, Kushan Period, 2nd century
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Tirthankara, Kushan Period
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Statue of Kanishka I (c. 127 – c. 140), Kushan Empire.
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Standing Buddha, 2nd century CE
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Head of Buddha. C. 5th Century CE, Chamunda mound, Mathura district
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Jain colossal head, Gupta period
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Standing Buddha, 5th century CE
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Rishabhanatha idol, 6th century
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Jain chaumukha sculpture, 6th century
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Parshvanatha, Post Gupta Period, 6th-8th Century CE
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Goddess Ambika - Medieval Period
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Four-armed seated Vishnu in meditation. Medieval Period, Pannapur.
• Error creating thumbnail:
  Anjani with Child Hanuman, Bronze, Pallava Period
• Naminatha, 12th century
  Naminatha, 12th century
• Bodhisattva Manjushri statue, 15th-16th Century
  Bodhisattva Manjushri statue, 15th-16th Century
• Buddha with Vajra, Bronze, 18th Century
  Buddha with Vajra, Bronze, 18th Century
• Balarama, 18th Century
  Balarama, 18th Century
• Baby Krishna with Ball, Bronze, Modern Age
  Baby Krishna with Ball, Bronze, Modern Age
• Cast and Mould, Prehistory and Terracotta Gallery
  Cast and Mould, Prehistory and Terracotta Gallery
• Statue of Victoria, Empress of India
  Statue of Victoria, Empress of India

See also

• Mathura lion capital

References

• Bharat Online – Mathura Museum

Further reading

• Sharma, R. C. 1976. Mathura Museum and Art. 2nd revised and enlarged edition. Government Museum, Mathura.
• Growse, F. S. 1882. Mathura A District Memoir.
• Kumar, Jitendera. Masterpieces Of Mathura Museum. Sundeep Prakashan. .

External links

• Mathura Museum
• Mathura, a District Memoir