Children’s Section
4,00,000 BCE

From Pre-history
to Proto-history

The dawn of civilization: first stone tools, early rock art in Bihar, farming in Chirand; discovery of copper and birth of Indus cities. The Aryans arrive. Vedic hymns are composed.
    600 BCE

    Rise of the Mahajanapadas

    Of the 16 Mahajanapadas, Magadha emerges supreme. Rajagriha becomes capital. First coins are minted. Mahavira is born. Buddha attains enlightenment. Ajatashatru’s fort Pataligrama marks the future city of Pataliputra.
      362 BCE

      Nandas: War and Peace

      The Nandas conquer Magadha and build a mighty army, attempting the earliest empire. Agriculture and irrigation advance. Greek conqueror Alexander reaches Punjab. His exhausted army refuses to advance further.
        323 BCE

        Mauryans: The First Empire

        Chandragupta Maurya overthrows the Nandas, aided by astute counsel Chanakya, writer of Arthashastra. Ashoka establishes largest empire of India. Kalinga War violence turns Asoka to Buddhism. He inscribes dhamma edicts.
          185 BCE

          Shunga: New Trends in
          visual arts and architecture

          The Shungas seize Magadha. Buddhism spreads far and wide. Stories are sculpted on railings of Mahabodhi Temple, Bodh Gaya. Buddhist art depicts Buddha through symbols as footprints and Empty Throne.
            50CE

            Kushana: Cross-cultural encounters

            Kushana Empire stretches from Afghanisthan to Gangetic plain. Gandhara and Mathura become dominant art centres; Buddha is depicted in human form. Trade through Silk Route expands culture. Buddhism travels east.
              320 CE

              Gupta: Age of creativity
              and prosperity

              Chandragupta strengthens his kingdom with a Licchavi alliance. Gupta political influence spreads. Fa Hien visits India. Art, culture and learning reach unsurpassed heights with Nalanda and works of Aryabhatta and Kalidasa.
                606 CE

                Vardhana: A transitory phase

                Gauda King Sasanka rules over Magadha. After his death, King Harshavardhana gains control. He is a great patron of arts. Hieun Tsang visits Nalanda and Bodh Gaya, writing important travel accounts.
                  755 CE

                  Pala: Zenith of
                  intellectual exchange

                  Pala dynasty rule Bihar and Bengal. Vikramshila and Odantapuri universities are founded. Kurkihar becomes centre for metal art. Pala stone sculpting develops. Other Tantric forms of Buddhism develop, as Vajrayana.
                    1206 CE

                    The Sultanates: Delhi becomes the new centre of power

                    The Delhi Sultanate marks the beginning of Muslim rule in India; successive dynasties rule Bihar from Delhi and Bengal. Bhakti and Sufi movements gain momentum. In 1526, Babur establishes Mughal Empire.
                      1540CE

                      Sher Shah Suri:
                      The Afgan interlude

                      Afghan Sher Shah Suri defeats Mughal Emperor Humayun and becomes ruler of India. His achievements include consolidation of the major route Sadak-e-Azam, today Grand Trunk Road. He issues the silver Rupiya.
                        1556 CE

                        Mughal: Consolidation
                        of Mughal Rule

                        Akbar becomes Emperor of India. Abu’l Fazl’s Ain-i-Akbari records Bihar as an important province under Mughal rule. British set up textile factory in Patna. Guru Gobind Singh is born in Patna.
                          1717 CE

                          Nawabs of Bengal and British accession to power

                          Winning the Battles of Plassey and Buxar, in1757 and 1764, the British East India Company take control of Bihar, Bengal and Orissa. Patna becomes an international trading centre. Golghar granary is built.
                            1858 CE

                            British Raj:
                            Archaeological exploration

                            British Crown takes over reign. Prinsep deciphers ancient scripts. Cunningham begins excavations at Nalanda and Bodh Gaya. Mauryan pillared hall is discovered at Kumrahar,1912. Bihar Province is created in 1936.
                              1947 CE

                              Independent India

                              Dr. Rajendra Prasad of Bihar is the first President of the Republic of India in 1950.

                                The magnificent
                                Didarganj Yakshi

                                Discoveries in history are replete with coincidences and the finding of the famous Chauri-Bearer statue is surely one of the most fortunate ones. The statue is 5’2” tall on a pedestal of 1’7 ½” made of Chunar sandstone finished to an incredible mirror-like polish. The discovery was made the same year as the official establishment of the Patna Museum – 1917. Reports on how the statue was found, vary. A Patna Museum publication describes how in the letter of Honourable E.H.S. Walsh, then Commissioner of Patna, credit is given to a man by the name Ghulam Rasul, who saw the base sticking out from the muddy banks by the riverside near Didarganj. Rasul then proceeded to dig up the ground to find the statue.

                                Most of us would like to believe the other more romantic version, which is the story most commonly told and also co-relates with the Confidential Report filed by the Inspector of Police on October 20th 1917. On the banks of the Ganges in Didarganj in Old Patna City, for years it was said that dhobis washed clothes on a slab that was sticking out of the earth. One day, a snake appeared in the precincts and as the villagers followed in chase, it slithered away into a hole in the ground near the slab. When the villagers started to dig up the earth, they found the slab was actually the bottom pedestal of a marvellous statue, which we now call the Didarganj Yakshi. The story is allegorical, reminding us of the nature of history itself, how often we casually use some part of it that is visible without really knowing the rest, which is hidden. It is also quite serendipitous, how the Yakshi made her presence felt, at the right time, the very year the Patna Museum was established. Ever since, she has been the star attraction at the Patna Museum. The Bihar Museum will display this much coveted artefact on the second floor at the Historical Art Gallery.

                                The Yakshi embodies close-to-perfect standards of feminine beauty of ancient India. Her figure is voluptuous with a full bust, slender at the waist and wide at the hips. *More unusual but prescribed norms of beauty are incorporated as the griva trivali – the three fold lines on the neck and katyavali – folds of flesh at the waist. Perhaps, what is most striking about the statue, after one has absorbed the obviously attractive features, is the graceful manner in which the figure endears itself to us. The Yakshi stoops slightly forward instead of standing upright, seeking a posture of humility. The smile on her lips is elusive, yet hauntingly sweet. The design of her right leg is slightly bent as if due to the weight of the fly-whisk she holds and the firmness of her grip on the chauri, show the delicacy of rendition in detailing. It is a figure in the round, which means it can be viewed from all angles.

                                After the find, historians had the job of dating the statue. Which era would they place the artefact by looking at the kind of stone, finish and the style of sculpture? From the high gloss of the polish and the superhuman qualities of the Yakshi, comparable to those found in the railing of the Buddhist stupa at Bharhut, R.P Chanda concludes that it demonstrates the classical learning by Magadhan artists from the foreign masters of the Asokan School. J.N.Banerjea classifies all such statues in the round with this type of lustre as Mauryan and slots it in the range of 1st century BCE or earlier. Nihar Ranjan Ray preferring to call her Yakshini, concluded that from the style it could well belong to the Mathura Yakshis of 2nd century CE. However, the regal bearing is similar to the Mauryan figures at the crown of monolithic capital columns. While opinions range in this manner, the statue has been accepted as from the Mauryan era.

                                The statue suffered damage over the years it lay buried. The left arm is missing and the Yakshi’s nose is chipped. Despite these disfigurations, the statue exudes a romance and magic of a time gone and is a breathtaking example of the superior level of craftsmanship thousands of years ago in Bihar. Witness her splendour at the Bihar Museum, where she now has a permanent home!

                                *The Didarganj Chauri Bearer female figure by Jai Prakash Narayan Singh and Arvind Mahajan. Patna Museum Publication – 2012

                                 

                                Timings

                                ALL DAYS: 10:30am - 5pm
                                MONDAY CLOSED.

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                                Contact

                                +91 0612 2235732

                                info@biharmuseum.org

                                Location

                                Jawarlal Nehru Marg (Bailey Road),
                                Patna, Bihar 800001, India

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