The
Government Museum of Mathura that houses an excellent collection of
sculptures belonging to the ancient Mathura school of art is one of the
leading museums of not only Uttar Pradesh but also India. Sir F.S.
Growse originally founded this museum in the year 1874. Government
Museum of Mathura that is also called Mathura Museum is considered one
of the leading centers for research, study and the preservation of the
heritage left by the Mathura School of Sculpture. The museum is presently housed near the historic Dampier Park in Mathura. The building of the museum itself is worth visiting. This aesthetically beautiful building is octagonal in shape and is made out of the red-sandstone. The museum boasts of the largest, vivid and the most splendid collection of Kushana sculptures in the country. The Museum also has very proud collections of stone sculpture and terracotta. Most of them belong to the Kushana period and after. Apart from that, the museum also has a magnificent collection of gold, silver and copper coins, clay seals, ancient pottery, paintings and bronzes among others.
