History Museum

Tucked away in the history wing of Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, this History Museum in Aurangabad is a must visit for all history enthusiasts and for anyone who rejoice visualizing the ancient sculptures and many other items.

About the Museum

Owned by the Department of History and Ancient Indian Culture, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, the History Museum in Aurangabad, Maharashtra is one of the top places to visit. The museum has a varied collection of priceless items ranging from a period of Paleolithic to pre-medieval era, from early historic to early primitive, and from the Mughal to the Colonial period. Being a part of the history wing of the university, the museum offers the students an opportunity to visualize the historic artifacts and the evolution of the ancient sculptures in Indian.

The idea for the museum was struck by Dr. R.S. Gupte in 1973 who was the then professor and head of the Department of History and Ancient Indian Culture. All the staff members and the faculty of the department made strong efforts and that paved the way to this successful and beautiful museum in 1983. The prolific collection of the museum was later enhanced by Dr. S.B. Deshmukh, the ex-curator of the museum, who donated to the museum’s development. Later, several additions were made from the collection of Sir Rao Bahadur Parasnis and Sardar Bavane’s painting collections which enriched the artistic value and the antiqueness of the possessions in the Museum.

The museum consists of two halls and displays over 125 carvings and describing the Marathwada lifestyle. There are also valuable assortments of international items such as artifacts from China and Japan which include China clay, gold embroidery, and ornaments on display. The gallery also showcases some religious texts and manuscripts in Arabic and Persian from the 18th century. Some of the highlights and the items displayed in the museum are given down below:

• Stone and Bronze sculptures – from 8th century to 16th century A>D.
• Coins – from Pinch mark to British period
• Lithographs
• Documents – around 1700 Modi Documents of Maratha period
• Miniature paintings (1700 to 1900 A.D.) – Mughal, Rajasthan, Deccan and Company School of miniature art.
• Archaeological Material – Excavated material (2nd century B.C. to 3rd century A.D.) from the site of Bhokardan and cultural material from the site of Daulatabad and Ter.
• Weapons – different types of weapons from Mughal – Maratha period.