Udaipur has a very interesting history and the city is quite different from the rest of the Rajasthan. Udaipur has a great system of lakes, Ahar/Ayad river passes through the city, and the entire city is encompassed by lush Aravali hills. The terrain, the history, and the culture make the city an amazing one. The relics of the bygone era are preserved in the Museums in Udaipur and is something every local or tourist must pay a visit to. On the occasion of International Museum Day, let us take you on a virtual tour to the different museums in Udaipur.
Here is a list of Museums in Udaipur
The City Palace Museum, Udaipur
The most celebrated museum in Udaipur is the City Palace Museum, which was set up in 1969 by Maharana Bhagwat Singh ji. It was to preserve the culture, heritage, and traditions of the people of Mewar. The museum contains relics including miniatures paintings, silver artifacts, recreational items of the royals, swords, and artillery and so many antiques.
Timings: 9:30am – 5:30 pm
Tickets:
Adult: Rs 300
Child: Rs 100
Camera: Rs 250
Guide: Rs 250
Audio Guide: Rs 200
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Ahar Archeological Museum
This museum was established in 1960 by the Archaeology and Museums Department of the Government of Rajasthan. This is a site museum which means that this museum is located in the vicinity of the excavation site itself.
The museum contains copper and terracotta pottery objects that are more than 3000 years old. It also houses sculptures of Hindu gods and ‘tirthankars’ (Great Jain teachers) from the 8th to 16th centuries AD. Here you can see earthen pots, iron objects and other artifacts that were a part of the lifestyle of prehistoric people. Some things are acknowledged to belong to 1700 B.C. Two of the main attractions are the metal statue of Lord Buddha and a statue of “Vishnu-Nag-Nathan” which are a great wonder to watch.
If you are interested to know more about the archaeology and origins of Ahar civilization, do watch the detailed documentary below:
Timings: 10:00 am – 5 pm, Closed on Fridays
Tickets: Rs 20
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The Vintage and Classic Car Museum
Introduced in 2000, the Collection Includes 22 Splendid Cars. You can also have lunch at the adjoining Garden Hotel. Some of the cars are more than 70 years old. The collection embraces Rolls-Royce, MG-TC convertible, Cadillacs, Vauxhall-12, Ford-A Convertible, Mercedes – Benz, Chevrolet bus and other beautiful vintage cars.
Timings: 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Ticket: Rs. 250
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Bagore ki Haveli Museum
West Zone Cultural Centre decided to restore as well as renovate Bagore ki Haveli in the year 1992 and set up a museum to restore its architecture. One can find, jewelry boxes, dice-games, hukkahs, pan boxes, nutcrackers, hand fans, rose water sprinklers, copper vessels and other household objects of the everyday life of the bygone era. The museum showcases the chambers of royal ladies, their dressing rooms, bathrooms, living rooms, bedrooms, worship rooms and recreation rooms as well.
Timings: 9:30 am – 5:30 pm
Tickets:
Foreigner (Adult/children): Rs. 100/-
Indian (Adult): Rs. 50/-
Indian Children (Age between 5 to 12): 25/-
Camera/Video: Rs. 50/-
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Moti Magri Museum
There are paintings of Rajput kings and royal queens and models of the Haldi Ghati Battle and Chittorgarh Fort. This museum also contains an exhibition of the arms and weapons used in ancient fights by soldiers. The Pearl hill or Moti Magri is a great spot to visit, overlooking the lake Fatehsagar in the front and Pichola-Swaroop Sagar from the back.
Timings: 7:00 am – 8:00 pm
Tickets:
Adult: Rs 50
Child: Rs 15
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The Crystal Gallery
The Gallery contains artifacts created by F. & C. Osler in the year 1877. These are furniture and cutlery, exclusively ordered by the Maharana Sajjan Singh and consist of Crystal chairs, tables, beds, sofas, dinner sets, perfume bottles, decanters, glasses, plates etc. The Maharana passed away before these crystals arrived so these were kept packed and intact for 110 years. In the year 1994, the gallery became open for public.
Timings: 9 am – 7 pm
Tickets:
Adult: Rs 500
Children: Rs 300
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Bhartiya Lok Kala Mandal Museum
The Bhartiya Lok Kala Mandal museum displays a remarkable collection of ‘Lok Kala’ or Folk Art. It was founded by Padma Shri Devi Lal Samar in 1952. The museum houses folk heritage of India, traditional attires, ornaments, miniature paintings and many other art objects. In other words, one can say that the museum is devoted to the culture and folk art of states of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat. Artifacts found here consist of wooden articles, old musical instruments paintings, masks, puppets, pottery, rural dresses etc.
Timings: 10 am – 6 pm
Tickets:
Adults: Rs 40 and other tickets include video/audio cameras
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Tribal Research Institute Museum (TRI’s)
It is one of the 18 Tribal Research Institute of the nation. MLV (Manikya Lal Verma) Tribal Research Institute provides awareness about Mewar’s tribal communities. The museum houses artifacts belonging to the tribal communes, along with a library on tribal life and issues. The museum also has multiple household articles, costumes, arms and armors, musical instruments, ethnic art and wall paintings, agricultural implements, grain containers, handicrafts, ornaments and so much more.
Timings: 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Location:
Tribal Museum Shilpgram
A tribal museum was set up in 1995 inside Shilpgram. Here history, life, and cultures of the tribal communities like Bhil, Mina, Garasia, Kathodi, and Saharia have been exhibited with the help of photographs and ethnographic objects. Shilpgram or ‘Craftsmen Village’ is an initiative to promote the rural and tribal craftsmen by providing a platform to exhibit and sell their products. Shilpgram has about 26 huts which depict the lifestyle of the rural tribes.
Timings: 11am – 7pm
Tickets
Indian (adult and child): Rs.30
Foreign visitors: Rs.50
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Zonal Anthropological Museum
Out of 19 government museums in the state, Udaipur division has four – situated in Ahar, City Palace, Dungarpur, and Chittorgarh. Udaipurites are lucky to have a special museum at the anthropological survey of India, Western regional center at Pratapnagar inaugurated in March 2018. The popularity of the museum was evident from the fact that it was visited by no less than 9000 persons in the very first year. The diverse ways of life followed by various communities such as Kotwalia, Naika, Varlui, Rebori, Marwara, Meghwal, Rathwara, Tadi, Bhil, Gameti, Ahir and Jat of Gujarat as portrayed in the museum, make it a special one.
As also communities such as Sahoria, Damor, Bhil, Brahman, Jain, Rajput, Dangi, Bhopa, Jogi, Langa, Lohar, Mangryar, Mudlim, Kumbhar, Prajapat, and Suthar of Rajasthan. Lifestyles of groups such as kali, Patel, Mahyavansh, Mitka, Halpati of Daman and Diu are presented in the museum so as to highlight the different socio-economic milieus with the help of specimens, sketches, charts, maps, and photographs. Specimens exhibited to help in the understanding of various cultural adaptation not only show their exotic appearance but also showcase the biocultural richness of the people of Western India.
Till date, the regional center has collected about 6000 ethnographic objects from different districts of Gujrat and Rajasthan from all communities including tribal. The specimens can be functionally classified as agriculture, hunting, fishing, etc. Bows and arrows, ornaments, musical instruments, crafts, objects, ritual, objects, pre-historical material and so on. The center arranged exhibitions on various themes at a different location such as Udaipur, Jaisalmer, Jaipur during Shilpgram Utsav and other occasions.
(Information by Ashok Mathur)
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How many of these have you visited?
Note: The above article is for information purpose. While we have tried our best to ensure the latest available time and ticket prices, etc., the respective museums have the right to change them. Readers are advised to do their research on timings/tickets/availability, etc.