Victoria Memorial Hall Museum

Victoria Memorial Hall Museum occupies the marble building of the Victoria Memorial on Queen's Way at the south end of the Maidan in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. The memorial was proposed by Lord Curzon after the death of Queen Victoria in 1901, the foundation stone was laid in 1906, and the hall opened to the public in 1921, when it began as a museum of British Indian history. Today it is managed by the Victoria Memorial Hall trust under the Ministry of Culture and holds more than 28,000 objects arranged in about 25 galleries. The Royal Gallery shows portraits and personal objects of Queen Victoria, including her writing desk and piano. The Portrait Gallery presents paintings of figures of the East India Company and the Raj. The Calcutta Gallery traces the growth of the city from a trading post at Sutanuti in 1690 through maps, models and photographs. The National Leaders Gallery covers the freedom struggle, with objects relating to Gandhi, Tagore, Subhas Chandra Bose and other leaders. The museum holds works by Thomas and William Daniell, Johann Zoffany and other European painters, along with Mughal miniatures, arms and armour, rare books and manuscripts. The curatorial approach is largely thematic and chronological, with several galleries refurbished with new lighting and panels. The marble building has been restored through cleaning and structural repairs, and the museum has carried out digitisation of its archive. The adjoining gardens and the evening sound-and-light show are part of the visit, and the museum is within walking distance of St Paul's Cathedral and the Academy of Fine Arts.