Victoria Memorial , Kolkata
About Victoria Memorial
Victoria Memorial is the iconic building of Kolkata, viewed over the water feature surrounding it. This immaculate building is testimonial to the city's colonial past. Victoria Memorial, a monument exhibiting regal beauty and elegance was built between 1906 and 1921. The monument, located in Kolkata, is now a museum and a celebrated picnic destination. The Product of Viceroy George Curzon’s innovative thinking, the monument was built in Memory of the British Empress, Queen Victoria. It aims to keep the Colonialist history of India alive. Now this building is also a museum which focuses on the visual history of Calcutta.
The white palatial memorial exhibits a blend of Indo-Saracenic and Revivalist styles of Architecture. It was designed by a talented architect William Emerson. The 64-acre garden, surrounding the monument, was designed by the Scottish physician and botanist Sir David Prain and Lord Risdale. A bronze statue, known as “Victorias Angel”, which is 4.8 meters in height, crowns the monument.
The museum contains a large collection of memorabilia associated with Queen Victoria and Britain’s Imperial Rule in India. It houses remarkable collections of paintings, artefacts, weapons, textiles, coins, books, statues, and stamps among others and maintains few possessions of the Queen like her writing desk and chair and scrapbooks. In total there are 25 galleries like the Royal Gallery and the Sculpture Gallery. There’s also a Calcutta gallery which reflects the development of yesteryear Calcutta. The Royal Gallery at Victoria Memorial still has original oil paintings from that era, which take you to those times.
Apart from brushing up their History and spending some leisure time in the gardens, tourists could also entertain themselves by watching the sound and light show and if lucky they may able to take a ride on a chariot.
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Places to Visit near Victoria Memorial
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National Library, Kolkata, West Bengal
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