Thank God, I have already visited this place and won’t have to wriggle my way through the crowd which will now flock to this museum after this award!
The museum in question is Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (CSMVS) that was earlier known as Prince of Wales Museum of Western India that turned a century old on 10th of January 2022 won the prestigious Award of Excellence in this year's UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation on 26th of November 2022!
The museum that was founded during British rule to commemorate the visit of Prince of Wales, was first used as a war hospital during the First World War, then for influenza pandemic before it officially opened as a museum on the 10th of January 1922. This a part of the Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai's world heritage property.
One of the best and well-maintained museums in Mumbai near Fort (Town) this heritage building stands tall, housing around 50,000 exhibits of ancient India and artefacts from foreign lands, this is Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya originally named Prince of Wales Museum of Western India. It holds collection of gold Kushana coins and some breath-taking piece of jewellery.
Entry fee – INR 100
Photo permit – INR 100
In a statement released by UNESCO Bangkok this project “sets a standard” for the conservation of world heritage monuments. “The jury applauded the museum project for restoring ‘a major civic institution in the historic city of Mumbai’,” it said. They statement further included that “Impressive in its scale, the project addressed extensive deterioration through well-informed architectural and engineering solutions, overcoming major challenges during the pandemic,”
Members of the jury reviewed 50 entries from 11 countries from the Asia-Pacific region. This year had seen thirteen projects from six countries that were considered for awards by the jury this year Afghanistan, China, India, Iran, Nepal and Thailand.
Chief of the Culture Unit at UNESCO Bangkok, Feng Jing had quoted “The awards give people a sense of pride and sense of ownership of their own heritage,”.
UNESCO Asia-Pacific Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation programme that started in 2000 has been recognizing the efforts taken by private individuals and also organizations in restoring and conserving heritage structures of any region.
The other awards won by India are:
• Award of Distinction: Stepwells of Golconda, Hyderabad
• Award of Merit: Domakonda Fort, Telangana, and Byculla Station, Mumbai
With every state of India putting in efforts to keep their heritage alive, these awards encourage the efforts taken by the individuals and the state and pushes them to look after the remnants of our rich culture!
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