The Archaeology Museum Alampur is next to the Bala Brahma Temple complex and boasts an excellent collection of sculptures and writings. These discoveries were obtained from the Navabrahma Temples and the area around Alampur, making it one of the places to visit in Alampur.
Artifacts and Exhibits at the Museum
The museum has 188 statues and two plaques. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the Vice President of India at the time, founded it in 1953. The dates on these items range from the sixth century to the sixteenth. Inside the museum is a big hall with an open area in the middle and a small wall on the east side. The items are spread out all over the hall.
The museum has many vital statues, such as Surya, Nataraja, Lord Vishnu, and Subrahmanya with Valli. It also features Siva and Parvathi riding Nandi in the 7th century, along with Saptamatrukas, Nagabandhas, Mahishasura Mardhini, Nagnanaka Bandha, Ashtadikpalakas, and Nagas. The most interesting thing in the museum is the Surya sculpture, which has one of the Nataraja figures and a Mahishasura mardhini.
The Surya sculpture was showcased at the International Art Exhibition in Germany in 1984, where it won several prizes. The Nataraja statue from the 11th century has eight hands and is very well made. The 7th-century Mahishasura Mardhini sculpture beautifully showcases various facial expressions from different angles.
History and Origins of the Archaeology Museum
The writing on the stones tells a lot about the area's past. The Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas, Kakatiyas, and Vijayanagara kings wrote on the stone. The first writing was a mix of Kannada and Telugu scripts. Some writings have pictures of Surya, Chandra, Shivalinga, a cow, and a knife. This means that as long as Surya and Chandra are alive, all donations should only go to Shiva, and taking these donations is the same sin as killing a cow.
Significance of the Archaeology Museum in Alampur
The Archaeology Museum in Alampur has unique statues, inscriptions, and items from Hindu and Buddhist times. It exemplifies the rich history that the area holds, in terms of Chalukyan art and buildings, and is a cultural and historical treasure trove, many times included in Alampur tour packages.