103-891: Jagat Seth was a wealthy merchant, banker and money lender family from Murshidabad in Bengal during the time of the Nawabs of Bengal . Though not at the same scale, but the influence exercised by this family in the finances of the Mughal Empire during the 17th and 18th century would be akin to that exercised by the Rothschild family in Europe. The house was founded by a Jain Oswal Bania named Hiranand Shah from Nagaur , Rajasthan , who came to Patna in 1652. In 1707, Manikchand helped Prince Farrukhsiyar financially to become
206-453: A contractor when necessary. The cultural property stored in museums is threatened in many countries by natural disaster , war , terrorist attacks or other emergencies. To this end, an internationally important aspect is a strong bundling of existing resources and the networking of existing specialist competencies in order to prevent any loss or damage to cultural property or to keep damage as low as possible. International partner for museums
309-471: A culture. As historian Steven Conn writes, "To see the thing itself, with one's own eyes and in a public place, surrounded by other people having some version of the same experience, can be enchanting." Museum purposes vary from institution to institution. Some favor education over conservation, or vice versa. For example, in the 1970s, the Canada Science and Technology Museum favored education over
412-718: A full-time director to whom authority is delegated for day-to-day operations; Have the financial resources sufficient to operate effectively; Demonstrate that it meets the Core Standards for Museums; Successfully complete the Core Documents Verification Program". Additionally, there is a legal definition of museum in United States legislation authorizing the establishment of the Institute of Museum and Library Services : "Museum means
515-600: A local businessman named Kantu borrowed money from Jagat Seth Fateh Chand and was interested in the purchase of silk. However, he failed to return the money. Indian businessmen refused to deal with the East India Company unless Kantu returned the money to Fateh Chand. This shows the great respect the local businessmen had for the Jagat Seths. Fateh Chand suffered a great loss in Delhi during Nader Shah's sack of
618-646: A monopoly of minting coins there. The Nawabs of Bengal such as Murshid Quli Khan used the credit networks of the Jagat Seth family to pay annual tribute to the Mughal Emperors in Delhi . Alivardi Khan came to the throne of Bengal in a military coup financed and planned by the Jagat Seths. According to William Dalrymple , they could "make or break anyone in Bengal, including the ruler, and their political instincts were sharp as their financial ones". Once
721-427: A much wider range of objects than a library , and usually focus on a specific theme, such as the arts , science , natural history or local history . Public museums that host exhibitions and interactive demonstrations are often tourist attractions , and many attract large numbers of visitors from outside their host country, with the most visited museums in the world attracting millions of visitors annually. Since
824-518: A municipality in 1869. Murshidabad was named after its founder, Nawab Murshid Quli Khan . Murshid is an Arabic term for a teacher or guide with integrity, sensibility, and maturity. The suffix -abad is derived from the Persian word abad , which referred to a cultivated place. Murshidabad is located at 24°11′N 88°16′E / 24.18°N 88.27°E / 24.18; 88.27 . Hazarduari Palace and its associated sites in
927-459: A museum and on display, they not only got to show their fantastic finds but also used the museum as a way to sort and "manage the empirical explosion of materials that wider dissemination of ancient texts, increased travel, voyages of discovery, and more systematic forms of communication and exchange had produced". One of these naturalists and collectors was Ulisse Aldrovandi , whose collection policy of gathering as many objects and facts about them
1030-554: A museum is successful, as happened in Bilbao, others continue especially if a museum struggles to attract visitors. The Taubman Museum of Art is an example of an expensive museum (eventually $ 66 million) that attained little success and continues to have a low endowment for its size. Some museum activists see this method of museum use as a deeply flawed model for such institutions. Steven Conn, one such museum proponent, believes that "to ask museums to solve our political and economic problems
1133-402: A museum's collection typically determines the museum's size, whereas its collection reflects the type of museum it is. Many museums normally display a "permanent collection" of important selected objects in its area of specialization, and may periodically display "special collections" on a temporary basis. The following is a list to give an idea of the major museum types. While comprehensive, it
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#17327727045751236-509: A notable person, or a given period of time. Museums also can be based on the main source of funding: central or federal government, provinces, regions, universities; towns and communities; other subsidised; nonsubsidised and private. It may sometimes be useful to distinguish between diachronic museums which interpret the way its subject matter has developed and evolved through time (e.g., Lower East Side Tenement Museum and Diachronic Museum of Larissa ), and synchronic museums which interpret
1339-508: A palace of Henry VIII , in England opened the council room to the general public to create an interactive environment for visitors. Rather than allowing visitors to handle 500-year-old objects, however, the museum created replicas, as well as replica costumes. The daily activities, historic clothing, and even temperature changes immerse the visitor in an impression of what Tudor life may have been. Major professional organizations from around
1442-407: A public, tribal, or private nonprofit institution which is organized on a permanent basis for essentially educational, cultural heritage, or aesthetic purposes and which, using a professional staff: Owns or uses tangible objects, either animate or inanimate; Cares for these objects; and Exhibits them to the general public on a regular basis" (Museum Services Act 1976). One of the oldest museums known
1545-903: A series of standards and best practices that help guide the management of museums. Various positions within the museum carry out the policies established by the Board and the Director. All museum employees should work together toward the museum's institutional goal. Here is a list of positions commonly found at museums: Other positions commonly found at museums include: building operator, public programming staff, photographer , librarian , archivist , groundskeeper , volunteer coordinator, preparator, security staff, development officer, membership officer, business officer, gift shop manager, public relations staff, and graphic designer . At smaller museums, staff members often fulfill multiple roles. Some of these positions are excluded entirely or may be carried out by
1648-565: Is Ennigaldi-Nanna's museum , built by Princess Ennigaldi in modern Iraq at the end of the Neo-Babylonian Empire . The site dates from c. 530 BC , and contained artifacts from earlier Mesopotamian civilizations . Notably, a clay drum label—written in three languages—was found at the site, referencing the history and discovery of a museum item. Ancient Greeks and Romans collected and displayed art and objects but perceived museums differently from modern-day views. In
1751-773: Is UNESCO and Blue Shield International in accordance with the Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property from 1954 and its 2nd Protocol from 1999. For legal reasons, there are many international collaborations between museums, and the local Blue Shield organizations. Blue Shield has conducted extensive missions to protect museums and cultural assets in armed conflict, such as 2011 in Egypt and Libya, 2013 in Syria and 2014 in Mali and Iraq. During these operations,
1854-487: Is a center for agriculture, handicrafts and sericulture . The famous Murshidabad silk , much in demand for making saris and scarves, is produced here. As of 2011 Indian Census , Murshidabad had a total population of 44,019, of which 22,177 were males and 21,842 were females. Population within the age group of 0 to 6 years was 4,414. The total number of literates in Murshidabad was 32,451, which constituted 73.7% of
1957-782: Is a historical city in the Indian state of West Bengal . It is located on the eastern bank of the Bhagirathi River , a distributary of the Ganges . It forms part of the Murshidabad district . During the 18th century, Murshidabad was a prosperous city. It was the capital of the Bengal Subah for seventy years, with a jurisdiction covering modern-day Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar and Orissa . It
2060-554: Is believed to be one of the earliest museums in the world. While it connected to the Library of Alexandria it is not clear if the museum was in a different building from the library or was part of the library complex. While little was known about the museum it was an inspiration for museums during the early Renaissance period. The royal palaces also functioned as a kind of museum outfitted with art and objects from conquered territories and gifts from ambassadors from other kingdoms allowing
2163-448: Is no longer a main purpose of most museums. While there is an ongoing debate about the purposes of interpretation of a museum's collection, there has been a consistent mission to protect and preserve cultural artifacts for future generations. Much care, expertise, and expense is invested in preservation efforts to retard decomposition in ageing documents, artifacts, artworks, and buildings. All museums display objects that are important to
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#17327727045752266-404: Is not a definitive list. Private museums are organized by individuals and managed by a board and museum officers, but public museums are created and managed by federal, state, or local governments. A government can charter a museum through legislative action but the museum can still be private as it is not part of the government. The distinction regulates the ownership and legal accountability for
2369-438: Is not necessarily a negative development; Dorothy Canfield Fisher observed that the reduction in objects has pushed museums to grow from institutions that artlessly showcased their many artifacts (in the style of early cabinets of curiosity) to instead "thinning out" the objects presented "for a general view of any given subject or period, and to put the rest away in archive-storage-rooms, where they could be consulted by students,
2472-634: Is particularly true in the case of postindustrial cities. Examples of museums fulfilling these economic roles exist around the world. For example, the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao was built in Bilbao, Spain in a move by the Basque regional government to revitalize the dilapidated old port area of that city. The Basque government agreed to pay $ 100 million for the construction of the museum, a price tag that caused many Bilbaoans to protest against
2575-417: Is to set them up for inevitable failure and to set us (the visitor) up for inevitable disappointment." Museums are facing funding shortages. Funding for museums comes from four major categories, and as of 2009 the breakdown for the United States is as follows: Government support (at all levels) 24.4%, private (charitable) giving 36.5%, earned income 27.6%, and investment income 11.5%. Government funding from
2678-518: The Age of Enlightenment saw their ideas of the museum as superior and based their natural history museums on "organization and taxonomy" rather than displaying everything in any order after the style of Aldrovandi. The first "public" museums were often accessible only for the middle and upper classes. It could be difficult to gain entrance. When the British Museum opened to the public in 1759, it
2781-466: The American Alliance of Museums does not have such a definition, their list of accreditation criteria to participate in their Accreditation Program states a museum must: "Be a legally organized nonprofit institution or part of a nonprofit organization or government entity; Be essentially educational in nature; Have a formally stated and approved mission; Use and interpret objects or a site for
2884-657: The Ancient Greek Μουσεῖον ( mouseion ), which denotes a place or temple dedicated to the muses (the patron divinities in Greek mythology of the arts), and hence was a building set apart for study and the arts, especially the Musaeum (institute) for philosophy and research at Alexandria , built under Ptolemy I Soter about 280 BC. The purpose of modern museums is to collect, preserve, interpret, and display objects of artistic, cultural, or scientific significance for
2987-631: The French East India Company , the Dutch East India Company and the Danish East India Company , conducted business and operated factories around the city. Silk was a major product of Murshidabad. The city was also a center of art and culture, including ivory sculptors, Hindustani classical music and the Murshidabad style of Mughal painting . The city's decline began with the defeat of
3090-712: The Mughal Emperor . In award, Farrukhsiyar conferred the title of Jagat Seth on Manik Chand, the head of the family, meaning "banker or merchant of the world". This indicates the favour the family had gained at the Mughal court. Roben Orme, the official historian of the British East India Company described Jagat Seth as the greatest banker and money changer known in the world at that time. The historian Ghulam Hussain Khan believed that "their wealth
3193-538: The National Endowment for the Arts , the largest museum funder in the United States, decreased by 19.586 million between 2011 and 2015, adjusted for inflation. The average spent per visitor in an art museum in 2016 was $ 8 between admissions, store and restaurant, where the average expense per visitor was $ 55. Corporations , which fall into the private giving category, can be a good source of funding to make up
Jagat Seth family - Misplaced Pages Continue
3296-617: The Newark Museum in a series of books in the early 20th century so that other museum founders could plan their museums. Dana suggested that potential founders of museums should form a committee first, and reach out to the community for input as to what the museum should supply or do for the community. According to Dana, museums should be planned according to community's needs: "The new museum ... does not build on an educational superstition. It examines its community's life first, and then straightway bends its energies to supplying some
3399-482: The Smithsonian Institution stated that he wanted to establish an institution "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". In the late 19th century, museums of natural history exemplified the scientific drive for classifying life and interpreting the world. Their purpose was to gather examples from each field of knowledge for research and display. Concurrently, as American colleges expanded during
3502-629: The Titanic Belfast , built on disused shipyards in Belfast , Northern Ireland , incidentally for the same price as the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao and by the same architect, Frank Gehry , in time for the 100th anniversary of Titanic 's maiden voyage in 2012. Initially expecting modest visitor numbers of 425,000 annually, first year visitor numbers reached over 800,000, with almost 60% coming from outside Northern Ireland. In
3605-675: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. uses many artifacts in their memorable exhibitions. Museums are laid out in a specific way for a specific reason and each person who enters the doors of a museum will see its collection completely differently to the person behind them- this is what makes museums fascinating because they are represented differently to each individual. In recent years, some cities have turned to museums as an avenue for economic development or rejuvenation. This
3708-834: The interpretive plan for an exhibit, determining the most effective, engaging and appropriate methods of communicating a message or telling a story. The process will often mirror the architectural process or schedule, moving from conceptual plan, through schematic design, design development, contract document, fabrication, and installation. Museums of all sizes may also contract the outside services of exhibit fabrication businesses. Some museum scholars have even begun to question whether museums truly need artifacts at all. Historian Steven Conn provocatively asks this question, suggesting that there are fewer objects in all museums now, as they have been progressively replaced by interactive technology. As educational programming has grown in museums, mass collections of objects have receded in importance. This
3811-515: The 1660s, it became a pargana of the Mughal administration, with jurisdiction over European companies in Cossimbazar . In the early 18th-century, Murshid Quli Khan , the prime minister of Bengal Subah, had a bitter rivalry with Prince Azim-ush-Shan , the viceroy of Bengal. The latter even attempted to have Khan killed. The Mughal court in Delhi was also rapidly losing authority in much of
3914-499: The 1860s. The British Museum was described by one of their delegates as a 'hakubutsukan', a 'house of extensive things' – this would eventually become accepted as the equivalent word for 'museum' in Japan and China. American museums eventually joined European museums as the world's leading centers for the production of new knowledge in their fields of interest. A period of intense museum building, in both an intellectual and physical sense
4017-520: The 19th century, they also developed their own natural history collections to support the education of their students. By the last quarter of the 19th century, scientific research in universities was shifting toward biological research on a cellular level, and cutting-edge research moved from museums to university laboratories. While many large museums, such as the Smithsonian Institution, are still respected as research centers, research
4120-665: The British Museum for its possession of rare antiquities from Egypt, Greece, and the Middle East. The roles associated with the management of a museum largely depend on the size of the institution. Together, the Board and the Director establish a system of governance that is guided by policies that set standards for the institution. Documents that set these standards include an institutional or strategic plan, institutional code of ethics, bylaws, and collections policy. The American Alliance of Museums (AAM) has also formulated
4223-626: The British for the conspiracy. Any members of the conspiracy group had no intention to found British rule in India, instead they were just concerned about their political futures. After the Battle of Plassey , Mir Qasim became the new Nawab. He organised the killing of several members of the family including Jagat Seth Mehtab Chand and his cousin Swarup Chand, in 1763, and threw their bodies off
Jagat Seth family - Misplaced Pages Continue
4326-538: The Jagat Seths began declining. Govindchand, the next Seth , died in 1864, succeeded by Gopal Chand and Gulab Chand respectively. By then, the fortunes of the family had declined by a considerable amount. The last member of the family died in 1912, their fortunes being a thing of the past and surviving on a pension given by the British. The house of the Jagat Seths, complete with a secret tunnel as well as an underground chamber, where illegal trade plans were hatched, has been converted into museum . House of Jagat Seth Museum
4429-547: The Kila Nizamat area (forming the central area in the map alongside) is the centre of attraction in Murshidabad. Just a little away are Katra Masjid , Fauti Mosque , Jama Masjid and the Motijhil area. There is a group of attractions in the northern part of the town (as can be seen in the map alongside). Some attractions such as Khushbagh , Rosnaiganj , Baranagar , Kiriteswari Temple , Karnasuvarna and others are on
4532-476: The Nawab was betrayed by his commander Mir Jafar . The British installed Mir Jafar's family as a puppet dynasty and eventually reduced the Nawab to the status of a landlord (zamindar). The British continued to collect revenue from the area's factories. The merchant families continued to prosper under company rule in India . In 1858, the British government gained direct control of India's administration. Murshidabad
4635-528: The Nawab, who ranked as the first nobleman of the province with the style of Nawab Bahadur of Murshidabad , instead of Nawab Nazim of Bengal . The Hazarduari Palace was built in 1837 as a residence for both the Nawab and British civil servants. Murshidabad became a municipality in 1869. The population in 1901 was 15,168. The silk industry was revived with assistance from the government. The area also became notable for mango and litchi production. See also - Nawabs of Bengal and Murshidabad The city today
4738-681: The Nawab. The Jagat Seth were one of the prominent banking families of Murshidabad. They controlled money lending activities and served as financiers for administrators, merchants, traders, the Nawabs, the Zamindars, as well as the British, French, Armenians and Dutch. The merchants built many mansions, including the Azimganj Rajbati, Kathgola house and Nashipur house. The Nawabs of Bengal entered into agreements with numerous European trading companies allowing them to establish bases in
4841-697: The United States, several Native American tribes and advocacy groups have lobbied extensively for the repatriation of sacred objects and the reburial of human remains. In 1990, Congress passed the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), which required federal agencies and federally funded institutions to repatriate Native American "cultural items" to culturally affiliate tribes and groups. Similarly, many European museum collections often contain objects and cultural artifacts acquired through imperialism and colonization . Some historians and scholars have criticized
4944-543: The United States, similar projects include the 81,000 square foot Taubman Museum of Art in Roanoke, Virginia and The Broad in Los Angeles . Museums being used as a cultural economic driver by city and local governments has proven to be controversial among museum activists and local populations alike. Public protests have occurred in numerous cities which have tried to employ museums in this way. While most subside if
5047-431: The chosen artifacts. These elements of planning have their roots with John Cotton Dana, who was perturbed at the historical placement of museums outside of cities, and in areas that were not easily accessed by the public, in gloomy European style buildings. Questions of accessibility continue to the present day. Many museums strive to make their buildings, programming, ideas, and collections more publicly accessible than in
5150-531: The city in 1740 , but he was able to continue his business. He died on 2 December 1744. The Jagat Seths were the most prominent moneylenders to the East India Company . During the Maratha invasions of Bengal , the Bargi Maratha mercenaries plundered the mansion of the Jagat Seth, taking away two and a half crore rupees as booty. Siraj ud-Daulah , the new Nawab of Bengal, alienated figures important to
5253-474: The city of Murshidabad and named the city after himself. It became the center of political, economic and cultural life in Bengal. The jurisdiction of the Nawab included not only Bengal, but also Bihar and Orissa. Murshidabad was also located centrally in the expanded jurisdiction of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. The presence of the princely court, the Mughal Army , artisans and multiethnic merchants increased
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#17327727045755356-404: The classical period, the museums were the temples and their precincts which housed collections of votive offerings. Paintings and sculptures were displayed in gardens, forums, theaters, and bathhouses. In the ancient past there was little differentiation between libraries and museums with both occupying the building and were frequently connected to a temple or royal palace. The Museum of Alexandria
5459-440: The construction of another palace and military base, a new gateway, the revenue office, a public audience hall ( durbar ), a private chamber, the treasury and a mosque in an extensive compound called Farrabagh (Garden of Joy) which included canals, fountains , flowers, and fruit trees. Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah established a palace near the Motijhil (Pearl Lake). The Nizamat Imambara was built for Shia Muslims . The palace complex
5562-539: The development of more modern 19th-century museums was part of new strategies by Western governments to produce a citizenry that, rather than be directed by coercive or external forces, monitored and regulated its own conduct. To incorporate the masses in this strategy, the private space of museums that previously had been restricted and socially exclusive were made public. As such, objects and artifacts, particularly those related to high culture, became instruments for these "new tasks of social management". Universities became
5665-413: The establishment of the earliest known museum in ancient times , museums have been associated with academia and the preservation of rare items. Museums originated as private collections of interesting items, and not until much later did the emphasis on educating the public take root. The English word museum comes from Latin , and is pluralized as museums (or rarely, musea ). It is originally from
5768-686: The festival but it is celebrated during the winter season, especially during January or February. The festival is complete with cultural performances, heritage walks, cruise along the Bagirati River and exotic food. The Food served during the festival is purely vegetarian, with special emphasis on Sheherwali cuisine. Museum A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying and/or preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private collections that are used by researchers and specialists. Museums host
5871-409: The former use and status of an object. Religious or holy objects, for instance, are handled according to cultural rules. Jewish objects that contain the name of God may not be discarded, but need to be buried. Although most museums do not allow physical contact with the associated artifacts, there are some that are interactive and encourage a more hands-on approach. In 2009, Hampton Court Palace ,
5974-697: The funding gap. The amount corporations currently give to museums accounts for just 5% of total funding. Corporate giving to the arts, however, was set to increase by 3.3% in 2017. Most mid-size and large museums employ exhibit design staff for graphic and environmental design projects, including exhibitions. In addition to traditional 2-D and 3-D designers and architects, these staff departments may include audio-visual specialists, software designers, audience research, evaluation specialists, writers, editors, and preparators or art handlers. These staff specialists may also be charged with supervising contract design or production services. The exhibit design process builds on
6077-566: The interest of his state- including the Jagat Seth Mehtab Chand. The Nawab demanded a lavish tribute of 30 million rupees from the banker. Jagat Seth Mehtab Chand refused, and a result, Siraj ud-Daulah hit him. The Jagat Seth was a co-conspirator of Robert Clive against Siraj ud-Daulah , along with other alienated figures, among them prominent being- Mir Jafar , Krishnachandra Roy , Omichund , Ray Durlabh & other leading men. The Jagat Seth and other wealthy bankers funded
6180-526: The last independent Nawab of Bengal Siraj-ud-Daulah at the Battle of Plassey in 1757. The Nawab was demoted to the status of a zamindar known as the Nawab of Murshidabad . The British shifted the treasury, courts and revenue office to Calcutta . In the 19th century, the population was estimated to be 46,000. Murshidabad became a district headquarters of the Bengal Presidency . It was declared as
6283-422: The looting of the collection is to be prevented in particular. The design of museums has evolved throughout history. However, museum planning involves planning the actual mission of the museum along with planning the space that the collection of the museum will be housed in. Intentional museum planning has its beginnings with the museum founder and librarian John Cotton Dana . Dana detailed the process of founding
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#17327727045756386-407: The material which that community needs, and to making that material's presence widely known, and to presenting it in such a way as to secure it for the maximum of use and the maximum efficiency of that use." The way that museums are planned and designed vary according to what collections they house, but overall, they adhere to planning a space that is easily accessed by the public and easily displays
6489-409: The museum landscape has become so varied, that it may not be sufficient to use traditional categories to comprehend fully the vast variety existing throughout the world. However, it may be useful to categorize museums in different ways under multiple perspectives. Museums can vary based on size, from large institutions, to very small institutions focusing on specific subjects, such as a specific location,
6592-617: The museum planning process. Some museum experiences have very few or no artifacts and do not necessarily call themselves museums, and their mission reflects this; the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles and the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia , being notable examples where there are few artifacts, but strong, memorable stories are told or information is interpreted. In contrast,
6695-525: The only people who really needed to see them". This phenomenon of disappearing objects is especially present in science museums like the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago , which have a high visitorship of school-aged children who may benefit more from hands-on interactive technology than reading a label beside an artifact. There is no definitive standard as to the set types of museums. Additionally,
6798-413: The other side of the river and there are attractions in the neighbouring Berhampore area also (not shown in the map). Note: The map alongside presents some of the notable locations in Murshidabad city. Most of the places marked in the map are linked in the larger full screen map. A few, without pages yet, remain unmarked. The map has a scale. It will help viewers to find out the distances. The area
6901-415: The past. Not every museum is participating in this trend, but that seems to be the trajectory of museums in the twenty-first century with its emphasis on inclusiveness. One pioneering way museums are attempting to make their collections more accessible is with open storage. Most of a museum's collection is typically locked away in a secure location to be preserved, but the result is most people never get to see
7004-570: The personal collection of Elias Ashmole , was set up in the University of Oxford to be open to the public and is considered by some to be the first modern public museum. The collection included that of Elias Ashmole which he had collected himself, including objects he had acquired from the gardeners, travellers and collectors John Tradescant the elder and his son of the same name . The collection included antique coins, books, engravings, geological specimens, and zoological specimens—one of which
7107-522: The population with male literacy of 77.3% and female literacy of 70.1%. The effective literacy rate of 7+ population of Murshidabad was 81.9%, of which male literacy rate was 86.0% and female literacy rate was 77.9%. The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes population was 13,762 and 302 respectively. Murshidabad had 9829 households in 2011.According to 2011 census the religious make-up of Murshidabd city was: Hindus (75.09%), Muslims (23.86%) and others(1.05%) The Murshidabad Heritage Festival aims at reviving
7210-685: The preservation of their objects. They displayed objects as well as their functions. One exhibit featured a historical printing press that a staff member used for visitors to create museum memorabilia. Some museums seek to reach a wide audience, such as a national or state museum, while others have specific audiences, like the LDS Church History Museum or local history organizations. Generally speaking, museums collect objects of significance that comply with their mission statement for conservation and display. Apart from questions of provenance and conservation, museums take into consideration
7313-422: The primary centers for innovative research in the United States well before the start of World War II . Nevertheless, museums to this day contribute new knowledge to their fields and continue to build collections that are useful for both research and display. The late twentieth century witnessed intense debate concerning the repatriation of religious, ethnic, and cultural artifacts housed in museum collections. In
7416-442: The private collections of wealthy individuals, families or institutions of art and rare or curious natural objects and artifacts . These were often displayed in so-called "wonder rooms" or cabinets of curiosities . These contemporary museums first emerged in western Europe, then spread into other parts of the world. Public access to these museums was often possible for the "respectable", especially to private art collections, but at
7519-400: The project. Nonetheless, over 1.1 million people visited the museum in 2015, indicating it appeared to have paid off for the local government despite local backlash; key to this is the large demographic of foreign visitors to the museum, with 63% of the visitors residing outside of Spain and thus feeding foreign investment straight into Bilbao. A similar project to that undertaken in Bilbao was
7622-484: The public presentation of regularly scheduled programs and exhibits; Have a formal and appropriate program of documentation, care, and use of collections or objects; Carry out the above functions primarily at a physical facility or site; Have been open to the public for at least two years; Be open to the public at least 1,000 hours a year; Have accessioned 80 percent of its permanent collection; Have at least one paid professional staff with museum knowledge and experience; Have
7725-407: The public, accessible and inclusive, museums foster diversity and sustainability. They operate and communicate ethically, professionally and with the participation of communities, offering varied experiences for education, enjoyment, reflection and knowledge sharing." The Canadian Museums Association 's definition: "A museum is a non-profit, permanent establishment, that does not exist primarily for
7828-708: The purpose of conducting temporary exhibitions and that is open to the public during regular hours and administered in the public interest for the purpose of conserving, preserving, studying, interpreting, assembling and exhibiting to the public for the instruction and enjoyment of the public, objects and specimens or educational and cultural value including artistic, scientific, historical and technological material." The United Kingdom's Museums Association 's definition: "Museums enable people to explore collections for inspiration, learning and enjoyment. They are institutions that collect, safeguard and make accessible artifacts and specimens, which they hold in trust for society." While
7931-457: The ramparts of Munger Fort . Mahtab Chand's son, Kushal Chand, was granted the title of Jagat Seth, but with the transfer of the treasury and mint to Kolkata by the British, the need of a private banker at Murshidabad was vastly diminished. Kushal Chand was only 18 years old when he became the Seth . He lacked his father Mehtab Chand's political shrewdness and was a spendthrift. Thus the fortunes of
8034-664: The region. The French East India Company operated factories in Murshidabad and Dhaka. The British East India Company was based in Fort William . Murshidabad was a part of the Dutch Bengal Department. The Ostend Company of Austria established a base near Murshidabad. The Danish East India Company also set up trading posts in the Bengal Subah. The last independent Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah was overthrown in 1757. Despite receiving assurances of French support,
8137-578: The ruler to display the amassed collections to guests and to visiting dignitaries. Also in Alexandria from the time of Ptolemy II Philadelphus (r. 285–246 BCE), was the first zoological park. At first used by Philadelphus in an attempt to domesticate African elephants for use in war, the elephants were also used for show along with a menagerie of other animals specimens including hartebeests , ostriches , zebras , leopards , giraffes , rhinoceros , and pythons . Early museums began as
8240-461: The study and education of the public. To city leaders, an active museum community can be seen as a gauge of the cultural or economic health of a city, and a way to increase the sophistication of its inhabitants. To museum professionals, a museum might be seen as a way to educate the public about the museum's mission, such as civil rights or environmentalism . Museums are, above all, storehouses of knowledge. In 1829, James Smithson's bequest funding
8343-576: The subcontinent. Amid the decline of the central government, the Mughal Emperor Farrukhsiyar promoted Khan to the status of a princely Nawab . As Nawab, Khan was given the opportunity to create a princely dynasty as part of the Mughal aristocracy. Murshid Quli Khan shifted the capital of Bengal from Dhaka , which lost its strategic importance after the expulsion of the Arakanese and Portuguese from Chittagong . He founded
8446-451: The subject matter which now include content in the form of images, audio and visual effects, and interactive exhibits. Museum creation begins with a museum plan, created through a museum planning process. The process involves identifying the museum's vision and the resources, organization and experiences needed to realize this vision. A feasibility study, analysis of comparable facilities, and an interpretive plan are all developed as part of
8549-450: The tangible and intangible heritage of Murshidabad along with those nearby heritage towns of Azimganj, Jiaganj and Cossimbazar. The festival aims at preserving the past and integrating it with the present and to bring Murshidabad back in the tourism, cultural and heritage map of India. It is an initiative of Murshidabad Heritage Development Society (MHDS). The festival began in 2011 and has been celebrated ever since. There are no fixed days for
8652-494: The type of collections they display, to include: fine arts , applied arts , craft , archaeology , anthropology and ethnology , biography , history , cultural history , science , technology , children's museums , natural history , botanical and zoological gardens . Within these categories, many museums specialize further, e.g., museums of modern art , folk art , local history , military history , aviation history , philately , agriculture , or geology . The size of
8755-471: The vast majority of collections. The Brooklyn Museum's Luce Center for American Art practices this open storage where the public can view items not on display, albeit with minimal interpretation. The practice of open storage is all part of an ongoing debate in the museum field of the role objects play and how accessible they should be. In terms of modern museums, interpretive museums, as opposed to art museums, have missions reflecting curatorial guidance through
8858-766: The way its subject matter existed at a certain point in time (e.g., the Anne Frank House and Colonial Williamsburg ). According to University of Florida Professor Eric Kilgerman, "While a museum in which a particular narrative unfolds within its halls is diachronic, those museums that limit their space to a single experience are called synchronic." In her book Civilizing the Museum , author Elaine Heumann Gurian proposes that there are five categories of museums based on intention and not content: object centered, narrative, client centered, community centered, and national. Museums can also be categorized into major groups by
8961-402: The wealth of Murshidabad. Wealthy families and companies established their head offices in the city. The Murshidabad mint became the largest in Bengal, with a value amounting to two percent of the minted currency. The city witnessed the construction of administrative buildings, gardens, palaces, mosques, temples and mansions. European companies operated factories in the city's outskirts. The city
9064-428: The whim of the owner and his staff. One way that elite men during this time period gained a higher social status in the world of elites was by becoming a collector of these curious objects and displaying them. Many of the items in these collections were new discoveries and these collectors or naturalists, since many of these people held interest in natural sciences, were eager to obtain them. By putting their collections in
9167-475: The world offer some definitions as to what constitutes a museum, and their purpose. Common themes in all the definitions are public good and the care, preservation, and interpretation of collections. The International Council of Museums ' current definition of a museum (adopted in 2022): "A museum is a not-for-profit, permanent institution in the service of society that researches, collects, conserves, interprets and exhibits tangible and intangible heritage. Open to
9270-540: Was "encyclopedic" in nature, reminiscent of that of Pliny, the Roman philosopher and naturalist. The idea was to consume and collect as much knowledge as possible, to put everything they collected and everything they knew in these displays. In time, however, museum philosophy would change and the encyclopedic nature of information that was so enjoyed by Aldrovandi and his cohorts would be dismissed as well as "the museums that contained this knowledge". The 18th-century scholars of
9373-435: Was a concern that large crowds could damage the artifacts. Prospective visitors to the British Museum had to apply in writing for admission, and small groups were allowed into the galleries each day. The British Museum became increasingly popular during the 19th century, amongst all age groups and social classes who visited the British Museum, especially on public holidays. The Ashmolean Museum , however, founded in 1677 from
9476-496: Was charged with organizing the Louvre as a national public museum and the centerpiece of a planned national museum system. As Napoléon I conquered the great cities of Europe, confiscating art objects as he went, the collections grew and the organizational task became more and more complicated. After Napoleon was defeated in 1815, many of the treasures he had amassed were gradually returned to their owners (and many were not). His plan
9579-631: Was established in 1980. It is privately managed. It contains personal possessions of the Jagat Seth family including coins of the bygone era, muslin and other extravagant clothes, Banarasi sarees embroidered with gold and silver threads. According to the Archaeological Survey of India the house, temple and ruins associated with the memory of Jagat Seth's house at Mahimapur are State Protected Monuments (Item no S-WB-94). Murshidabad Murshidabad ( / ˈ m ʊər ʃ ɪ d ə ˌ b ɑː d / , /- b æ d / or / ˈ m ɜː -/ )
9682-541: Was fortified and known as the Nizamat Fort. The main entrances of the Nizamat Fort had musicians' galleries. The gates were high, imposing and tall enough for an elephant to pass through. The Khoshbagh garden was the burial place of the Nawabs. The city had a Bengali majority population, including Bengali Muslims and Bengali Hindus . There was an influential Jain community involved in trade and commerce. An Armenian community also settled and became financiers for
9785-561: Was full of brokers, workers, peons, naibs, wakils, and ordinary traders. Murshid Quli Khan transformed Murshidabad into a capital city with an efficient administrative machinery for his successors. He built a palace and a caravanserai with a grand mosque, known as the Katra Masjid . The main military base was located near the mosque and formed the city's eastern gateway. The third Nawab Shuja-ud-Din Muhammad Khan patronized
9888-711: Was never fully realized, but his concept of a museum as an agent of nationalistic fervor had a profound influence throughout Europe. Chinese and Japanese visitors to Europe were fascinated by the museums they saw there, but had cultural difficulties in grasping their purpose and finding an equivalent Chinese or Japanese term for them. Chinese visitors in the early 19th century named these museums based on what they contained, so defined them as "bone amassing buildings" or "courtyards of treasures" or "painting pavilions" or "curio stores" or "halls of military feats" or "gardens of everything". Japan first encountered Western museum institutions when it participated in Europe's World's Fairs in
9991-529: Was part of the Gauda Kingdom and Vanga Kingdom in ancient Bengal . The Riyaz-us-Salatin credited the initial development of the town to a merchant named Makhsus Khan. The merchant's role is also mentioned in the Ain-i-Akbari . During the 17th-century, the area was well known for sericulture . In 1621, English agents reported that large quantities of silk were available in the area. During
10094-649: Was realized in the late 19th and early 20th centuries (this is often called "The Museum Period" or "The Museum Age"). While many American museums, both natural history museums and art museums alike, were founded with the intention of focusing on the scientific discoveries and artistic developments in North America, many moved to emulate their European counterparts in certain ways (including the development of Classical collections from ancient Egypt , Greece , Mesopotamia , and Rome ). Drawing on Michel Foucault 's concept of liberal government, Tony Bennett has suggested
10197-404: Was such that there is no mentioning it without seeming to exaggerate and to deal in extravagant fables". They built up their business towards the last quarter of the 17th century and by the 18th century, it was perhaps the largest banking house in the country. In the 1750s, their entire wealth was estimated to be 14 crores. Jagat Seth was extremely influential in financial matters in Bengal and had
10300-807: Was the Louvre in Paris , opened in 1793 during the French Revolution , which enabled for the first time free access to the former French royal collections for people of all stations and status. The fabulous art treasures collected by the French monarchy over centuries were accessible to the public three days each " décade " (the 10-day unit which had replaced the week in the French Republican Calendar ). The Conservatoire du muséum national des Arts (National Museum of Arts's Conservatory)
10403-559: Was the seat of the hereditary Nawab of Bengal and the state's treasury, revenue office and judiciary. Murshidabad was a cosmopolitan city. Its population peaked at 100,000 in the 1750s. It was home to wealthy banking and merchant families from different parts of the Indian subcontinent and wider Eurasia , including the Jagat Seth and Armenians . European companies, including the British East India Company ,
10506-480: Was the stuffed body of the last dodo ever seen in Europe; but by 1755 the stuffed dodo was so moth-eaten that it was destroyed, except for its head and one claw. The museum opened on 24 May 1683, with naturalist Robert Plot as the first keeper. The first building, which became known as the Old Ashmolean , is sometimes attributed to Sir Christopher Wren or Thomas Wood. In France, the first public museum
10609-471: Was very badly affected by the Bengal Famine of 1770 . Murshidabad was a district city of the Bengal Presidency . Warren Hastings removed the supreme civil and criminal courts to Calcutta in 1772, but in 1775 the latter courts were brought back to Murshidabad again. In 1790, under Lord Cornwallis , the entire revenue and judicial staffs were moved to Calcutta. The city was still the residence of
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