Tamil Nadu - Museums of Tamil Nadu - Government Art Museum Madurai

 

Government Art Museum Madurai

The museum at the Sri Meenakshi Temple compound has on display bronze images and icons, musical instruments, lamps, jewellery and other art objects. Also on vision are paintings and wood carvings.

This Art Museum is located in the thousand pillared hall. It contains a good collection of objects of interest relating to the temple art and architecture. Thousand Pillar Hall is the ‘wonder of the palace’. Actually the number of pillars count to 985 beautifully decorated columns. Each pillar is sculptured and is a monument of the Dravidan sculpture. There is a Temple Art Museum in this 1000 pillars hall where you can see icons, photographs, drawings, etc., exhibiting the 1200 years old history. There are so many other smaller and bigger Mandapams in the temple.

Just outside this mandapam ,towards the west, are the Musical Pillars. Each pillar when stuck, produces a different musical note. The kalyana mandapa, to the south of the pillared hall, is where the marriage of Shiva and Parvati is celebrated every year during the Chitirai Festival in mid- April.

Address:
Art Museum
Sri Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple
Madurai 625 001

Operating Hours: 6.00 am to 8.00 pm
Open on all days.