Watson Museum
Encyclopedia
The Watson Museum in Rajkot, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 is a museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...

 of human history and culture. Its collections precious objects of colonial period of India and History of Rajkot. It is amongst the largest and most comprehensive museum in State of Gujarat. Watson Museum is considered to be the finest amongst 7 such museums located across Saurashtra (region) and run by the State Government because it holds invaluable articles and state-of-the-art facilities like photography, guide service, reference library and sales counter of the museum's publication.

History

The museum is set up in the Queen Victoria memorial institute buildings located in Jubilee Garden, Rajkot. The Watson Museum was named in fond memory of Colonel John Watson in 1888. Colonel John Watson was political agent of Kathiawar Agency
Kathiawar Agency
The Kathiawar Agency, on the Kathiawar peninsula in the western part of the Indian subcontinent, was a political unit of some 200 small princely states under the suzerainty of the Bombay Presidency of British India. Soon after India's independence in 1947, all but one of them acceded to the new...

 form 1881 to 1889 AD. Watson Museum is the second most important museum in Gujarat, after the Museum of Baroda
Baroda Museum & Picture Gallery
The famous museum was built in 1894 on the lines of Victoria & Albert and Science Museums of London. Major Mant in association with R.F. Chisholm who refined some of Mant's finest works to make genuine Indo-Saracenic architecture designed the Building of this Museum. It preserves a rich collection...

 and is the oldest museum in Saurashtra (region). Colonel Watson was fond of his history and archeology and used to collect information on Rajkot. Most of his collections and other artifacts are preserved here. The museum building was completed in 1893, when it opened to the public by Governor Lord George Harris
George Harris, 4th Baron Harris
George Robert Canning Harris, 4th Baron Harris, GCSI, GCIE was a British politician, cricketer and cricket administrator...

 of Bombay Presidency
Bombay Presidency
The Bombay Presidency was a province of British India. It was established in the 17th century as a trading post for the English East India Company, but later grew to encompass much of western and central India, as well as parts of post-partition Pakistan and the Arabian Peninsula.At its greatest...

.

The Watson Museum exhibits copies of artifacts from Mohenjodaro, natural history, 13th century carvings, temple statues, costumes and design of the houses of the local tribal people. The Watson Museum also houses an excellent collection of traditional, archaeological items and coins.

While the museum's archeology gallery also boasts of artifacts of prehistoric period and the Harappan civilization
Indus Valley Civilization
The Indus Valley Civilization was a Bronze Age civilization that was located in the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent, consisting of what is now mainly modern-day Pakistan and northwest India...

 in the archeology gallery, a treasure of sculptures belonging to erstwhile Ghumali - a capital of Jethwa - grace the sculpture gallery.

Sections

  • Sculptures
  • Paintings and Manuscripts
  • Textile
  • Inscription
  • Coins
  • Anthropology
  • Folk Embroidery
  • Handicraft
  • Musical Instruments
  • Wood Work
  • Natural History
  • Rocks and Minerals

Annual events

  1. Bhartiya Shilp Samruddhi : It is week long celebration organized every year in the second week of January.
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