WITH a rich collection of thousands of sculptures, highly valuable ancient inscriptions, paintings, stuffed birds and animals, firearms and weapons, textiles, ivory idols, coins, manuscripts, archaeological findings from excavations, anthropological artifacts (aborigine art), fossils and other rare antinquities, the Central Museum in Nagpur is now poised to use digital and mobile technologies to enhance its outreach to domestic and foreign visitors.

 

The 156-year-old Central Museum, popularly known as ‘Ajab Bangla,’ has now become the first museum in Maharashtra to install Quick Response (QR) Code in its each gallery. Every important artifact has been given a particular QR code. Only, the visitors need a smart phone with internet access. These QR codes can be scanned through an App – GoWhatsThat – by which everyone can get extra information about the museum exhibits. This information is now available in English, Marathi, Hindi and 13 foreign languages. It enables a person, irrespective of his region or country, to get valuable information about the exhibits right from Stone Age to Modern times. It also provides audio facility so that visitors can either read or listen the information about the artifacts according to their convenience.

 

Speaking to ‘The Hitavada,’ Dr Virag Sontakke, Curator of Central Museum and Assistant Director, Directorate of Archaeology & Museums, Government of Maharashtra, said, “Our efforts are to educate more and more people about the rich Indian history, culture and surviving traces of our past civilization by displaying rare antiquities including ancient sculptures, inscriptions, weapons, paintings and other artifacts. Use of technology in museum is attracting more and more visitors. We are trying to update according to need of time and generation with revolutionising the ‘consumption’ of art. Use of latest mobile technology has become a great attraction for school and college students.” Central Museum has installed information kiosks in 10 galleries. It contains brief information about every specimen displayed in each gallery. This information in Hindi and English would be useful for visitors, including students, domestic and foreign tourists.

 

Dr Sontakke said, digitisation has been one of the most ambitious projects of Central Museum. “We are putting in concerted efforts to digitise artifacts so that detailed information is on our website and students, scholars and public in general in the world can get an easy access to the museum through internet,” he added.

 

Dr Sontakke said, Sir Richard Temple, the then Chief Commissioner of the Nagpur had taken a lead in establishing the Central Museum and himself had donated some of his personal collection of specimens of porcelain from Worcester to the museum. The collections were enriched by acquiring exhibits from the exhibitions held at Nagpur and Jabalpur in 1865-66. Sir Temple had organised a Royal ‘durbar’ at the residency to collect rare artifacts for the museum. He had called a meeting of all the renowned royal family members, Sardars, Jahagirdars, Malgujars and such other philanthropists to donate rare artifacts from their collection to the museum. Rev Stephen Hislop (Clergyman of the free Church of Scotland Mission in Nagpur), one of the founder members of the Central Museum, had taken great efforts to acquire rare artifacts for the museum. A museum committee was constituted comprising Capt P Dods (Director, Public Instructions) Capt Cobbe (Assistant Secretary PWD to Chief Commissioner), Capt Hector Mackenzie (Secretary to Chief Commissioner) and Capt J Ashburner (Deputy Commissioner) and Nana Ahir Rao (Indian member) to set up the project. Finally, the museum came into existence in 1863.

 

Through the past 156 years, Central Museum, Nagpur has been graded as one of the oldest museums in the country with valuable collection of thousands rare antiquities.

 

Today, the museum has 10 ten sections namely Birds Gallery, Art & Craft Gallery, Sculpture Gallery, Arms Gallery, Archaeology Gallery, Paintings Galley, Stone Inscriptions Galley, Tribal Art & Culture Gallery and Nagpur Heritage Gallery.

 

Dr Sontakke informed that a team of National Research Laboratory, Lucknow, is conserving and preserving the rare artifacts scientifically. A regular chemical treatment is carried by the team to conserve the exhibits. Fifty per cent of the artifacts are on display in the museum and remaining are in store. These artifacts in the gallery are periodically replaced. The entire museum is under surveillance cameras to secure the rare antiquities from evil elements.