Jaipur Albert Hall Museum

Albert Hall Museum or the Central Museum, sited amid the gardens of Ram Niwas Bagh in Jaipur, is one of the oldest museums in the state of Rajasthan. This museum was designed by Colonel Sir Swinton Jacob in 1876 for the purpose of greeting King Edward VII, Prince of Wales on his visit to India.

After ten years, it was opened to the public. Since 1969, the galleries on the ground floor of the museum have been thoroughly rebuilt and remodeled. The Albert Hall Museum is modeled on the Albert Museum of London and represents the Indo-Saracenic style of architecture.

The museum exhibits a rare collection of ancient stuffs including miniature paintings, carpets, metal and wood crafts, toys, dolls, arms and weapons and an Egyptian mummy belonging to the Ptolemaic Era. The most extraordinary of them is the carpet that depicts the scene of a Persian garden with gushing streams. This carpet was bought by Mirza Raja Jai Singh I at a dear price from Shah Abbas of Persia.

History of Albert Hall Museum
The building of Albert Hall Museum was built in 1876 as a concert hall. The museum gets its name from the Victoria and Albert Museum of London, because of the similarity of architecture. The foundation for the building started in 1876, when Prince of Wales visited Jaipur. When the building was constructed, the royals and government did not have any idea about usage of the building. It was initially used as Town Hall in 1880. Later, the King of Jaipur, Maharaja Sawai Madho Singh II suggested to use it as a museum for Industrial Arts. Later, the hall was used for displaying masterpieces of local artisans.
In 1881, the museum was at its prime beauty and people from across the country visited this museum to buy or enjoy handicrafts, artwork and other masterpieces. However, the building was under construction until 1887. Later, the museum started to showcase artifacts and ancient artworks along with budding artist’s masterpieces.

How to Reach Albert Hall Museum
By Air: Delhi and Mumbai are the two main gateway cities to Rajasthan from international destinations. There are regular flights connecting Delhi and Mumbai to Jaipur and Jodhpur in Rajasthan and also important destinations like Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai operated by domestic carriers.

By Train: Daily super fast train connects Mumbai to Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bikaner and Kota. Delhi (the nearest rail head to Jaipur) is also directly connected to Sawai Madhopur, Bharatpur, Kota, Udaipur, Bikaner, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer. Shatabdi train operates from New Delhi station to Ajmer via Jaipur. Double decker train is also available between Jaipur and Delhi.

By Road: The Interstate Bus Terminal (ISBT) at Kashmiri Gate, New Delhi has almost a twenty – four hour bus service to Jaipur. Air-conditioned and Volvo bus service of state owned Rajasthan state Roadways Transport Corporation (RSRTC) to Jaipur is operational from the premises of Bikaner House, Pandara Road.