I was put off with this Rs 20 for Indians and Rs 500 for foreigners entry charge! Come on, Calcutta, India is not a poor country desperate for the foreigner's money anymore...Having written that, I am full of praise for the outstanding collection of Buddhist and Hindu sculptures the museum houses. There are also a few Jain sculptures there.
I was lucky enough to be in the city when an exhibition of Indian Buddhist art was on display. There are great pieces of both Theravada and Mahayana art.
I just wonder whether the Brits took most of these idols from intact archaeological sites or whether they found them during excavations! Spending an afternoon at the museum, I learned a lot about Hindu and Buddhist art from the 9th to 11 centuries. The works featured sandstone idols from just before the Christian era to basalt sculptures from the 10th and 11th centuries.
Buddhist and Hindu art lived side by side from the 9th to 11th centuries. Judging by what I saw the religions seemed to coexist fine in Bihar, as they did in Ellora, where you have Hindu, Buddhist and Jain sculptures.
This lends credence to the theory I hear often in Sri Lanka that it was Islamic invaders that finished off Theravada Buddhism in the subcontinent with the exception of the emerald island and the Chittagong Hill Tracts (where 98 percent of the population were Buddhists), which were handed to East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) by the mischievous departing Brits.
The most interesting sculpture I saw was of Mahavira. The 2nd century BC idol showed the founder of Jainism in a meditative pose and I mistook him for the Buddha, especially because he had oriental features.
Another stunner was a 2nd century AD sculpture of the Buddha offering protection. He is actually smiling! I had never seen a smiling Buddha statue before.
I was also impressed with the various Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma and Ganesha sculptures. The museum has Hindu artwork from Bihar, southern India as well as Indonesia.
Ther museum also has parts of the huge Bharhut Stupa, which was believed to have been built by Emperor Ashoka. The copper gates are in great condition and the reliefs such the finest degree of craftsmanship and artistic ability existed in India at that time.
Seeing all these great art works convinces me that India was way ahead of its time right upto the point that the Islamic invasions began.
It's time for us to rise once again and honour our great ancestors!
I was lucky enough to be in the city when an exhibition of Indian Buddhist art was on display. There are great pieces of both Theravada and Mahayana art.
I just wonder whether the Brits took most of these idols from intact archaeological sites or whether they found them during excavations! Spending an afternoon at the museum, I learned a lot about Hindu and Buddhist art from the 9th to 11 centuries. The works featured sandstone idols from just before the Christian era to basalt sculptures from the 10th and 11th centuries.
Buddhist and Hindu art lived side by side from the 9th to 11th centuries. Judging by what I saw the religions seemed to coexist fine in Bihar, as they did in Ellora, where you have Hindu, Buddhist and Jain sculptures.
This lends credence to the theory I hear often in Sri Lanka that it was Islamic invaders that finished off Theravada Buddhism in the subcontinent with the exception of the emerald island and the Chittagong Hill Tracts (where 98 percent of the population were Buddhists), which were handed to East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) by the mischievous departing Brits.
The most interesting sculpture I saw was of Mahavira. The 2nd century BC idol showed the founder of Jainism in a meditative pose and I mistook him for the Buddha, especially because he had oriental features.
Another stunner was a 2nd century AD sculpture of the Buddha offering protection. He is actually smiling! I had never seen a smiling Buddha statue before.
I was also impressed with the various Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma and Ganesha sculptures. The museum has Hindu artwork from Bihar, southern India as well as Indonesia.
Ther museum also has parts of the huge Bharhut Stupa, which was believed to have been built by Emperor Ashoka. The copper gates are in great condition and the reliefs such the finest degree of craftsmanship and artistic ability existed in India at that time.
Seeing all these great art works convinces me that India was way ahead of its time right upto the point that the Islamic invasions began.
It's time for us to rise once again and honour our great ancestors!
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