Kondapur Museum Medak
Location of Kondapur Museum
Kondapur Museum located on a small hillock is about one km south of the village of Kondapur in Medak District, Telangana. Kondapur museum is around a distance of 70 km from Hyderabad.
Kondapur museum belongs to the Pre-Satavhana and was built between 200 BC and 200 AD. Kondapur Museum was built in the capital city of Mahisamandala. Kondapur museum was built on a 25-ft high mount and it is spread over 100 acres. The structures present at the museum signify that the museum was a center of spiritual faith, especially for the Sakti cult.
History of Kondapur Museum
A large number of glass vessels were found at the museum indicating the Roman influence in Kondapur. The Kondapur museum is considered the first Buddhist site in Telangana. It signifies that Kondapur once was a part of the Shatavahana empire and had a direct connection with Paithan.
In the present day, the exhibits present in the Kondapur museum are collected from the ancient mound locally known as Kotagadda (Fort Mound) located at a distance of one km east of the museum.
Excavations found at Kondapur Museum
From the fort, nearly 2,000 coins and many coin molds, ornaments made of gold and semi-precious stones, beads, and terracotta figurines have been recovered. The most precious one found was the gold coin of the Roman King Augustus.
Historians say that the view that ancient Kondapur city was larger than Amaravathi.
The mud wall of the fort is visible even in today’s times. As a result of the earthquakes and catastrophes all over these years, many other remains of the city are buried under the earth.
In the excavations, several structural remains have already been identified. Some of them even belong to Chaitya halls/monasteries. The furnaces, floors, workplaces, and storerooms indicate the rich industrial past. Historians say that Kondapur was the capital of the ceramic industry during ancient times.
Kondapur region was first explored by the famous Archaeologist Mr. Henry. Later, the Department of Archaeology of Hyderabad State under H.E.H. the Nizam of Hyderabad excavated this mound for different reasons in 1940.
A small museum was established with the found excavated material over the ancient site itself. Now it was shifted to the present museum. The Kondapur museum came under the administrative control of the Archaeological Survey of India in 1952.
The Archaeological Museum of Kondapur showcases a rich collection of minor antiquities unearthed from the digs of 1940-1942. The museum has a Central hall and two galleries in enclosed corridors.
The main hall of the museum displays a good number of antiquities in wall showcases representing different facets of the material culture of the early historic period such as pottery, terracotta figurines, bone and shell objects, metal objects, talismans, pendants, beads, inscribed pottery, and coins, brick tiles, sharpening stones, molded bricks, and designed panels, etc.
In the other two galleries, we can find prehistoric tools and fossils. A couple of sculptures, a Buddhapada, a standing image of four-handed Vishnu carved on a door jamb, and two inscribed storage jars are other attractive pieces in this gallery.
Also Visit: Gandhari Fort, Temple & Jatara, Mancherial – Complete Details
Some other specialties of Kondapur Museum
The uniqueness of the museum is the representation of the Ajanta Paintings. The museum also houses a separate manuscript section. Moreover, the Quran carrying the seal of Shah Jahan is the main attraction in this section.
We can also find the Egyptian Mummy in one of the corners of the museum. This Mummy was bought for 1000 pounds by the son-in-law of VI Nizam Mahbub Ali Khan and presented to the last Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan as a gift.
The museum is a must-visit destination for archeologists and historians. One can get to observe and study the various excavations of the South in the Kondapur Museum.
Also Visit: Alvanpalli Jain Temple, MahabubNagar Telangana
