The history of Ganga Golden Jubilee Museum, Bikaner goes back to the early decades of the 20th century. In 1915, an Italian scholar Dr. Luigi Pio Tessitori began the historical and bardic survey of the region with the support of Maharaja Sri Ganga Singh ji, the then ruler of the state. The survey proved a great success. A vast hoard of archaeological wealth, consisting of Proto-historic material remains, besides terracotta, sculptures, epigraphs, coins etc. of the subsequent period, was brought to light. In 1937, at the time of the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the reign of Maharaja Sri Ganga Singh ji, a museum building was constructed to house the art treasures acquired from various parts of the state. To these were added a number of other objects of general interest, spared by the Maharaja himself, for the museum from his own palace. The institution named after him as ‘Ganga Golden Jubilee Museum’, was inaugurated by Lord Linlithogow, the then Governor General of India, on 5th November 1937. In around 1947 the museum was shifted to ‘Ganga Niwas’ in the old fort by Maharaja Sadul Singh ji for public access. In the year 1950, the museum at Bikaner was taken over by the Government of Rajasthan and by 1954 it was moved to the current building. (Srivastava, Catalogue & Guide to Ganga Golden Jubilee Museum, Bikaner, 1960-61)
CENTER FOR ART AND ARCHAEOLOGY