Museums & Art Galleries: Assam
Assam
State Museaum , Guwahati
Assam State Museum in Guwahati
is a rich repository of antiquities that highlight the diversity of the
state s cultural traditions. In the early 1900s, a small dedicated group
of antiquarians formed a society to study, document and research the
cultural patterns of Assam. The artefacts they collected formed the
nucleus of the museum. On view are a large number of stone sculpture,
metal, wood and terracotta objects, textiles, coins, manuscripts and
tribal artefacts. The rare stone images date to the region's original
rulers, the legendary Kamarupas, who were in power till the 13th century.
Among the striking bronzes on view are a number of small but perfectly
formed images, a mukhalinga, bells and a conch shell. The largest
and most beautiful icon depicts Indra, the Vedic war god. The deity is
seen riding his vahana, flanked by two female chowri bearers who
stand on a padma. Bedecked with Jewels his right hand demonstrates
the varadahasta mudra while his left hand is held in the abhaya
mudra. Below the pitha is a male deity in the anjalihasta
pose while above, an ornate chatra crowns the image.
Among
the four bronze plates on view is a bust of Mahishasura. Portrayed in high
relief, a human head appears to have sprung from the neck of a buffalo.
Scholars believe that this plaque symbolically represents the devi.
Assam State Museum
Guwahati 781 001
Timings: Summer :
10.00 am to 4.30 pm; Winter: 9.30 am to 4.00 pm
Closed on Mondays and
second Saturdays. and government holidays.
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