The Salar Jung Museum is the biggest collection of antiques that one person has collected in the world. Though the majority of the artifacts are Eastern, it offers a lot of insight to any student of history. But then, the ninth grade IGCSE History class took a tour of the Western exhibits of the museum.
The first exhibit visited was the Founder’s Gallery, filled with portraits and relics that traced the past of the Salar Jung family. The room was filled with items that ranged from filigree perfume containers to rose water sprinklers, from a gold-rimmed cut glass wine-set from Czechoslovakia to English books from the time of the Nizams. The idea of objects belonging to times so long past was mind-blowing – and it was just the beginning.
The ‘Arms and Armory Gallery’ was a particularly fascinating room. Though the fact that it contained ancient backscratchers was a bit confusing, the scorpion-shaped brass knuckles, French ivory crossbows and palm-sized pistols were weapons sure enough to make up for it. Special serrated swords, used for stabbing and slicing out the enemy’s guts, were on display beside a full kilt of European armor and an array of javelins.
The ‘Painting gallery’ was a pleasant and a welcome change from the weaponry. Six types of paintings were displayed on the pale walls – animal, classical, domestic, historical, nature and romantic. Scenes from Greek tragedies came to life in their delicate gold frames, a copy of the Mona Lisa preened from its perch, but it was the double-sided statue that really stood out. The wooden model of the character Mephistopheles from the German drama Dr. Faust was only one side of the figure – his back, which could be viewed in the mirror, was the character Margaretta, from the same play.
The ‘Glass gallery’ was yet another glimpse of the glorious ancient art, filled with pitchers, vases and cups. The Venetian glass was delicate, while the Bohemian was gilded and then the Belgian had a crystal texture. The French gallery offered a wider array of pieces from France, with fancy desks, a pipe collection, angels preening around mirrors and intricately painted fans. The Egyptian gallery provided a glimpse at the articles collected from Egypt, but the greatest collection was that of the clocks.
The ‘Clock gallery’ was a hodgepodge of strange and magnificent timepieces. An umbrella clock sat next to a clown-faced clock, which was across the room from the figurine of a round man with a clock on his belly. Tiny bird figures peered out of their glass cages atop clocks and clocks loomed out of crystal balls. Enormous grandfather clocks were carved with bears and cupids, while a calendar clock displayed not only time, but also date and day of the week.
Our last exhibit was the ‘Rebecca gallery’. It displayed more statues than the Veiled Rebecca, but the Rebecca was the star of the show. The statue was carved out of marble, yet she seemed to be wearing a transparent veil.
There wasn’t nearly enough time to see all the exhibits of Salar Jung, but whatever we managed to see was truly marvelous.
Poorvaja R., IX F.
(Pictures are taken from the SalarJung website-ww.salarjungmuseum.in/photogallery)
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