Chandigarh Museum

The Chandigarh Museum which is also named as the Government Museum and Art Gallery is the main and biggest museum of Chandigarh. It has the essence of Punjab and Haryana in its true sense and art and history lovers will definitely enjoy unraveling the dynamics and culture, socio-political background and rich history of Chandigarh in this museum.

History of Chandigarh Museum:

Government Museum and Art Gallery was built in the year 1947, in August, right during the time when India became an independent country. The museum was designed by notable and one of the most popular and skilled architects of Chandigarh Le Corbusier. Currently, the curator and chief director of the Chandigarh museum is N.P.S. Randhwa.


The Museum Advisory Committee of India also directly overlooks the functioning of the place. The place has over 10,000 museum exhibits. So if you are planning to check out every aspect of the museum minutely, you better have a couple of days in hands.

Sections of Chandigarh Museum:

The museum has 3 main parts: the National History Museum, the Chandigarh Architecture Museum and the National Gallery of Portraits. These 3 sectors are then further divided into subcategories as well. For refreshment, the museum has a well maintained and well-stocked cafeteria and one can also purchase museum related items and memorabilia or souvenirs from the 2 museum shops present in the museum itself. 

The Gandhara Sculpture Section:

Most of the items in this sector are the items which were provided to the Chandigarh Museum by the Lahore museum. This was done in 1947 itself. There are over 600 items in this sector and they come in various shapes and sizes and subjects related to Buddhism.

The artistic style is similar, like, for example, if one comes across the life sized Buddha sculpture or the Jataka Story-related sculptures, it’s easy to understand from the stone used and the unique style they are all a part of the Gandhara Sculpture. The largest Gandhara sculpture collection is present in the Indian museum in Kolkata and right after that, it’s followed by the collection here at the Government Museum and Art Gallery of Chandigarh.

Miniature Painting Section:

Miniature paintings have always been a plus point from the artistic point of view in the history of India. The miniature painting sector of the museum is yet another mesmerizing sector.  The uniqueness of this sector is that the collection is not confined to art-related to Punjab but it goes to places like Rajasthan, Central India and other parts as well. Famous Mughal Miniature paintings are also displayed here. 


Some of the works are pretty ancient too. Some of the famous paintings here are the Laur Chanda Romance (from the 1500’s), the Ten Gurus by Bhai Puran Singh, the paintings depicting Emperor Shah Jehan in darbar, etc. The Bewar, Bundi, Marwar, Guker, Bikaner and the Chamba styles are very much significant here.

Dinosaurs in India Section:

If you are taking kids on this tour, then don’t forget to visit this fascinating sector. The name of the section speaks for itself. You will be amazed to know that a large number of old and new dinosaur remains have been found in India, in this region, especially. Life size skeletons are present here along with footprints and other materials found and also there are some life-like representations of the dinos here. You should definitely attend the special exhibition sector to know about their lifestyles, diets, habitats and types in prehistoric times.

There are thousands of displays which you should check out here so take some time and feel and experience the history come alive at the Chandigarh museum.

Contact Chandigarh Museum:

Chandigarh Museum
Address: Sector 10-C, Chandigarh - 160011