Vadodara Museum & Picture Gallery
The Vadodara Museum & Picture Gallery has been designed on the lines of London’s Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum. It showcases a rich collection of artifacts related to geology, archaeology, and natural history. You can also find here various items belonging to the personal collection of Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III, who was instrumental in setting up this museum. The picture gallery houses several masterpieces by European artists and an excellent collection of original paintings by British landscape painters, Turner and Constable. The major attractions of Vadodara Museum include the skeleton of a blue whale and an Egyptian mummy.
The Baroda Museum & Picture Gallery in Vadodara was built in 1894 on the lines of the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Science Museum 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.
Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III belonging to the Gaekwad dynasty of the Marathas founded the museum in 1887. The museum building was completed in 1894, when it opened to the public. Construction of the art gallery commenced in 1908, was completed in 1914, but did not open until 1921 as the First World War delayed transfer of pieces from Europe intended for the gallery.
Collection :
It preserves a rich collection of art, sculpture, ethnography and ethnology. The picture gallery offers a collection of originals by famous British painters J. M. W. Turner and John Constable and many others. The Egyptian mummy and skeleton of a baby blue whale are major attractions for those who visit the museum. Other treasure includes the famous Akota bronzes dating the 5th Century AD, A collection of Mughal miniatures, a full-fledged gallery of Tibetan Art and oils by several European masters.
- Location: Sayaji Garden
- Timings: 10:30 am to 5:00 pm; closed on government holidays
How to get there
By Road: Vadodara, 112 km from Ahmedabad and 420 km from Mumbai, is located on National Highway 8. There are various state transport (ST) buses and private luxury coaches from all over Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, and Rajasthan. Ahmedabad-Vadodara intercity buses take 2 hours and run every 15 minutes. There are also several private bus companies on or near Station Road. Tickets vary according to the type of bus, but the average rate is Rs 100/- to Ahmedabad and Rs 200/- to Mumbai. You can also rent a car with a driver to explore the city and its surroundings at the Express Hotel. Rates range from Rs. 650/- without air-conditioning to Rs. 2200/- for luxury vehicles, for 8 hrs or 80 km per day.
By Rail: Vadodara, a major railway junction is located on the Western Railway, which connects Mumbai, Delhi, and Ahmedabad.
By Air: Vadodara is connected by various domestic airlines to Ahmedabad, Delhi, Mumbai, Daman, and Pune.
