This Archaeological museum is located in a town named Kamalapur near Hampi. Although it is small, it is still worth visiting. This museum is dedicated to the Vijayanagara Empire and Hampi ruins. This small town is located in Karnataka in the Bellary district near Hampi.
This museum is within Vijayanagara city ruins and outside of Vijayanagara Empire’s Royal Centre. The specialty of this museum is that even though it is small, it is responsible for preserving various artifacts and relics that are related to the popular Vijayanagara Empire as well as its ruins.
This museum came into existence in 1972. The Archaeological Survey of India is responsible for its maintenance. It preserves and displays the beauty of the history of Hampi extremely well.
Some Facts About Archaeological Museum
Timing
Museum remains open for visitors from 10:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m. every day of the week except on Fridays and national holidays.
Entry Fee
You need to pay for visiting if you’re an adult. Only 5 INR per person, it’s free for children who are under 15 years.
Photography and Videography
Both are not allowed inside the museum.
Visit Duration
Around 2 to 3 hours
Parking Fee
It is free of cost
Best Time To Visit
Anytime!
Archaeological Museum History
This museum was built under the supervision of the Archaeological Survey of India. They took the responsibility of preserving the ruins of Hampi. Some tasks to preserve these ruins were done by the British officers.
Officers during these tasks collected some statues, sculptures, artifacts, and relics from the ruined location of Hampi and placed them at the popular place of Hampi The Elephant Stables.
After the construction work of this Museum was done at Kamalapura, these items that were preserved from the ruins were transferred to this Museum from the elephant stables.
Items At Archaeological Museum
This museum in Kamalapura displays a collection of various items. Sculptures are preserved from different locations in the ruins of Vijayanagara. Besides these sculptures artifacts, coins, ancient tools, paintings, copper plates, ivory items, architectural pieces, and other iconic ancient items of the Vijayanagara Empire.
These items are worth a view, it is quite amazing to look at these things and imagine the ancient culture of India. There are 4 different sections at this museum. Every section displays a particular type of preserved item.
The first section contains one out of the two models of Hampi topography. This model is larger compared to the other one. It displays a complete topography along with the temples and the monuments located in the Hampi. This model offers a marvelous idea of different attractions and other highlights of Hampi like rivers and hills located in Hampi.
The second section displays a wide collection of idols and sculptures that were collected from the ruins of Hampi. Some of the items on the display include artifacts that are dedicated to the worship of Lord Shiva.
Besides this other exhibits of this section are as follows:-
- Bhairava
- Veerabhadra
- Kartikeya
- Mahisasura Mardini
- Bhikshatana muthi
- Shakti
- Vinayaka
The third section of this museum displays coins, metallic items, tools, and other ancient artifacts, that used to be very popular in the ancient time of the Vijayanagara Empire. Besides these, some area of this section is covered with documents that seem to be like a book. These book-like documents are prepared from brass.
The last section of this museum has various antiquities. The items displayed in this section are the oldest of the rest of the items in the museum. Some items in this section are hero stones (these stones project the memory of heroes who were sacrificed on the battlefield), sati stones( these project the memories of females who killed themselves as their husbands died in the war), stucco figurines, a wide stock of excavation photos.
Another highlight of this section is the smaller model of Hampi topography. This second and smaller model defines the details and a whole view of the Royal Centre present in the Hampi.
How One Can Reach The Archaeological Museum
Hampi is one of the famous destinations for holidays that attracts visitors from many far and near places. You can reach Hampi by different modes of transport. This Archaeological Museum is located in a small town near Hampi, Kamalapura. If you reach Hampi you can easily reach this nearby town by any local means of transport.
Final Note
This museum contains artifacts of ruins in and around Hampi. You can learn different things about the history of Hampi by visiting this museum.