Asiatic Society set for revamp with Centre’s help
The 225-year-old building of The Asiatic Society at Park Street is set to get a makeover.
The 225-year-old building of The Asiatic Society at Park Street is set to get a makeover.
The Central Bank of India,housed in the same complex,has given one room to the Asiatic Society that is being replenished to serve as the publication department of the society.
The Asiatic Society,established in 1784 by Sir William Jones,is one of the most esteemed institutions of the country and is maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India.
“This room will house a number of new publications along with its innumerable old publications. The room will be completed in nearly two months,” Asiatic Society general secretary Ramakanta Chakrabarty said.
The society is also planning to build another building at Salt Lake,the funds for which have been sanctioned by the Union Ministry of Culture.
“The Centre will provide nearly Rs 15 crore,” Chakrabarty said.
Two floors are also going to be added to the new building of the Society.
The new building houses many books,sculptures and ancient manuscripts — some as old as 200 B.C.
The books include many encyclopedias in almost all Indian languages.
Precious works like that of Alexander Csoma de Kores’s Tibetan-Indian-Sanskrit dictionary and books on Indian history,Asian history,geography,zoology,astronomy and astrology are also housed in the library.
The Society also has a museum that contains ancient manuscripts,art objects and sculptures some of which have been handed over to the Indian Museum,Kolkata.
The museum of the society contains manuscripts like Ain-i-Akbari and Shah-Nama,a Burmese translation of Ramayana and many ancient sculptures that date back to 13th century B.C.
The Asiatic Society houses more than 50,000 manuscripts and books. With the addition of two more floors to the new building,more books and the society’s innumerable publications can be accommodated.
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