Bhau Daji Lad Museum

Bhau Daji Lad Museum, formerly known as Victoria and Albert Museum, is the oldest Museum in Mumbai. Built in Greek Roman style, this museum houses archeological findings, maps and photographs depicting the history of Mumbai, people of Mumbai and India, their occupation and recreation, Hindu deity and avtaar, traditional crafts of Maharashtra, clay models, silver and copper ware and costumes. 

The museum is a two storey building, the ground floor has a collection of copper ware, silver ware, ivory and sandal art, Indian Porcelain and more.

Sandalwood work

  

Pearl work



Silver ware along with miniature craft person



Indian Porcelain



Photography on Metal



Ivory art



Copper smith at work

The first floor has a collection of clay models which include, villages in India and village life, agriculture implements, Indian occupations, Meenakshi Temple in Madurai and Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi. Indian Deity: Agni, Kuber, Buddha, Yama, Kamdev, Surya, Hanuman, Ganapati, Kartikeya, Shiva, Brahma, Indra, Soma. Avatars of Vishnu, Sita in Ashokvana, Embassy of Krishna, Dattatreya - Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh avtaar.   

Basket weaver at occupation section



Khurgodi one of Indian outdoor games



Foreign Communities in Mumbai

The museum also has a shop, the objective of which is to support and promote craftmanship and Indian design. The range of products include handmade and hand painted mugs, trays, key chains, T-shirts etc. All products are sold entirely on non-profit basis.

Outside the Museum is The Elephanta Elephant . History says, this elephant stood at the entrance of Rajabunder Jetty at Gharapuri or Elephanta Island.The Elephant which symbolized royalty, the Rajabunder Jetty was used exclusively by the local King. The Island derived its European name "Elephanta" from the Portugese. In 1864, the British attempted to carry the Elephant back to England. The crane, however, broke and the Elephant shattered into several pieces. The fragments were brought to the Victoria Garden(Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyaan) and were reintegrated by Sir George Birdwood. Since then, it stands here at the Jijamata Udyaan.

The Garden also houses Mumbai Zoo, which houses many rare and endangered species of animals and birds.

Travel Guide:

Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Museum

91 A, Rani Baug,
Veer Mata Jijbai Bhonsle Udyan,
Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Marg,
Byculla East,
Mumbai, Maharashtra 400027.
India.
Phone:+91-22-23731234, +91-22-65560394

Visiting Hours: 10AM to 6PM(ticket sold till 5:30PM)
Closed on Wednesday and certain public holidays

Tickets:
Adult: Rs. 10/-
Children(5 to 15years): Rs.5/-
Students: Rs. 2/-
Foreign Citizen:
Adult: Rs. 100/-
Children(5 to 15years): Rs. 50/-

How to reach:

By bus - Most of the buses servicing South Mumbai, South-Central Mumbai, Central Mumbai and North-East Mumbai pass through Byculla.
By train - very well connected by the Mumbai Suburban Railway. The nearest railway station of Western Railway line is Mahalakshmi and that of Harbour Line is Reay Road station.