SPS Museum

The Shri Pratap Singh Museum, commonly known as the SPS Museum, is a museum in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India. Established in 1898, the museum houses a collection of over 80,000 objects from various regions in Northern India.[1]

Shri Pratap Singh Museum
Established1898
LocationSrinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India
TypeArchaeological and historical

Description

History

In 1889, a proposal for the foundation of an archaeology museum in the Indian city of Srinagar was formulated by Amar Singh and S.H. Godmerry.[2] Singh was an officer in the Colonial Indian Army, while Godmerry was a scholar.[3] The pair produced and submitted a memorandum to Pratap Singh of Jammu and Kashmir, the ruler of Sringar and Amar's older brother.[3] The Majarah accepted the proposal and agreed to allow for the establishment of a museum; this new institution would house artifacts from Jammu, Kashmir, Baltistan and Gilgit.[3] The museum was to be located inside a state-owned building near the Jhelum river.[2]

The establishment of the museum was overseen by John Marshal, a British archaeologist (and future director of the Archaeological Survey of India) who was renowned for his work in preserving the archaeological history of India.[3] Srinagar's Accountant General, one Mr. Blerjee, was appointed as the first president of the museum; Blerjee was also tasked with recording a large collection of coins the museum added to its collection.[3] The museum opened to the public in 1898, with its first collection consisting of items from Majarah Pratap's palace treasury.[3]

Following the re-organizational efforts of Indian archaeologist Daya Ram Sahni in 1913, the museum received objects recovered from archaeological excavations in Panderenthan, Parihaspora and Avantipura.[3] The collection of the museum continued to grow through the donation of items by private collectors; many of these items were domestic or household in nature.[3][4]

In 2017, the museum finished constructing a second building.[4] The new building was built to be fire and earthquake resistant, and is used to house some of the SPS's more popular exhibits. The older 19th-century building remains in use.[4]

Saksham Maskara

References
  1. "Shri Pratap Singh, Kashmir's lone museum, opens new building for public in Srinagar - Firstpost". www.firstpost.com. Retrieved 2018-11-16.
  2. "SPS Museum Srinagar". museu.ms. Retrieved 2018-11-16.
  3. "Department of Tourism, Jammu and Kashmir - SPS Museum". jktourism.org. Retrieved 2018-11-16.
  4. Valley’s lone museum opens to public. The Tribune. 12 Jun 2017. URL. https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/jammu-kashmir/valley-s-lone-museum-opens-to-public/420829.html Retrieved 2018-11-16.

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