Games

5 Questions about History and Art from the Govt. Museum & Art Gallery Chandigarh

Here are 5 questions based on collections from the Government Museum & Art Gallery Chandigarh. How many can you answer? The collection at the museum includes ancient sculptures, rare manuscripts, textiles, Pahari paintings and modern art. This quiz tries to share a glimpse of collections representing each time-period.

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A version of this quiz was created by The Heritage Lab for the museum and first appeared in the Scroll in 2020

This 2nd century sculpture of the Buddhist deity Hariti, bears an inscription in Kharosthi script. Who deciphered this script?

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James Prinsep [officer in the East India Company; worked at the Banaras & Calcutta Mint]
Alexander Cunningham [British army engineer with a keen interest in history and archaeology]
John Marshall [archaeologist who also oversaw the excavation of Mohenjodaro & Harappa]

In which king’s court was the 12th-century poet Jayadeva (known for his work, Gita Govinda) counted among the five gems?

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Folio from the Gita Govinda series, dated 1730 CE, attributed to Manaku of Guler

King Lakshman Sena, Sena dynasty
King Kumarapala, Pala Dynasty
King Damodaradeva, Deva Dynasty of Bengal

Which of these from the Sanghol Stupa, can be identified as a ‘Salabhanjika’ ?

As per the terms of the Treaty of Amritsar (1846), it was agreed that “Raja Gulab Singh would pay an annual tribute of twelve shawl goats, and three pairs of shawls” as a tribute to the British East India Company.

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(Detail) This gulnari embroidery shawl illustrates the tale of Alexander’s life, with episodes and characters from the Shahnama. It was presented by Sayyad - a rafoogar from Jammu to Maharaja Gulab Singh.

True
False

Which of India’s 9 national treasure artists, known for his pursuit of the mythical kingdom of Shambhala, created this painting of its ruler, Rigden Djapo?

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“Himalayan Deity” depicts mountains charged by Mongolian deity Rigden Djepo’s sacred power and the horsemen riding across the world carrying his message. Rigden Djepo, the equivalent of the Maitreya Bodhisattva – the future Buddha – was believed to be the ruler of Shambhala, a mythical kingdom in Tibetan Buddhist tradition.

Bireshwar Sen
Nicholas Roerich
Gaganendranath Tagore

The Heritage Lab
The Heritage Lab
The Heritage Lab presents stories and resources from museums with a focus on South Asia - featuring its art, culture, history and heritage.