Introduction

Located in the Pink Hall of Mubarak Mandi, the complex of old palaces, the Dogra Art Gallery (now also referred to as the Dogra Art Museum) began as a small display of the heritage and traditions of Jammu’s Dogra community in the 1960s. This has grown to become a representative collection of the rich heritage of the Dogra clans as well as that of the Jammu region – and much of the credit for establishing this and nurturing it goes to Sansar Chand. Over five thousand items spanning a period of 1,500 years are on display. The displays begin right at the entrance where there is a fine carved image of Uma-Mahesh that is surmised to date back to the tenth century. A black marble image of Shiva has also been placed here.

The martial tradition of the Dogras figures prominently in the gallery – and a variety of weapons are on display. These include swords, daggers, pistols, guns and revolvers; sections of armor that protected various parts of the body are also on display – mail of chain, breast and arms plates and helmets. Most of these date back to the eighteenth century. One exhibit is a bow that is believed to have been used by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan. Portraits of the various Dogra rulers of Jammu and Kashmir adorn a section. The gallery on the ground floor has a large sculpture of General Zorawar Singh, hero of the region. There is an excellent collection of around eight hundred works of the remarkable miniature paintings of the area and the major schools are represented and the collection includes paintings from Basohli, Kangra and Jammu. One remarkable set is the Krishna-Sudhama series from eighteenth century. The nuances of each school are apparent and in some paintings, the borders are as finely worked as the subjects.

Costumes, fabrics and embroideries are a part of the gallery’s displays. There is also a small section that has terracotta objects that were excavated from the ancient settlement of Ambran which is about thirty kilometers from Jammu. Old carpentry tools and finely calligraphed manuscripts of the Sikandernama and Shahnama is Persian are also on display.

A collection of photographs of ‘Dogra architecture’ completes the fine collection of the gallery. These are pictures of the old forts and palaces.

Special Attributes

Superb collection of the area's artifacts and a representative window to its culture

Nuisance

A section of this burnt down and some parts are still not completely functional

Dressing restrictions

Comfortable but conservative.

Connectivity

Taxis, auto rickshaws and walking

Enjoyed by

History, architecture and art lovers

Exposure

None indoors

Avoidable Season

Open through the year

Facilities

Restaurants close by

Things Not Allowed

None as such

Tip

Try and plan this as least a half-day excursion

Type of site

Art gallery and museum