City Palace Museum (Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II Museum)

The City Palace Museum, formally the Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II Museum, occupies parts of the City Palace in the Old City of Jaipur, Rajasthan, India. It holds the collection of the Kachwaha royal family, built up from the foundation of Jaipur in 1727 through the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries, and it was opened to the public after Sawai Man Singh II, the last ruling maharaja, transferred the palace to a trust. The museum is housed in the Mubarak Mahal, the Diwan-i-Khas and the Diwan-i-Aam, Rajput-Mughal buildings of sandstone and marble that were once reception and audience halls. Its best-known pieces are the two Gangajali silver urns, each about 1.6 m tall, made for Sawai Madho Singh II to carry Ganges water on his 1902 journey to London for the coronation of Edward VII, and recorded as among the largest silver objects in the world. The textile and costume galleries display royal garments, including the enormous clothes of Madho Singh I, and block-printed and embroidered fabrics. The armoury holds swords, daggers, guns and ornate weapons in the Sileh Khana, while the Diwan-i-Aam also displays miniature paintings, manuscripts and carpets. The galleries are arranged by type of object rather than as a strict chronology, which gives a thematic picture of court life, ritual and craftsmanship. A trust set up by the royal family, the Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II Museum Trust, manages and conserves the collection, with climate and lighting improvements, textile conservation and gallery upgrades carried out over recent decades. Some objects still show age and handling, though most are in good condition. Visitors can buy a separate ticket for the Chandra Mahal, which includes more private royal rooms, and audio guides in several languages are available, so the museum is more accessible to foreign visitors than many Indian heritage sites. Together with the nearby Jantar Mantar, it forms the core of a half-day visit to the Old City.