Museums in Cochin

Museums in Cochin

The museums of any place are bearers of its history and the upholders of the traditions that the place has lived and continued up to the present day. Some traditions take physical forms and appearances – like ancient palaces, the art of a particular period, the costumes of a particular era or the religious symbols of that time. All this heritage and culture of a bygone time are brought to life in the form of a museum that exhibits this ancient culture and history of Kerala. The museums in Cochin are no exception – they will provide the visitors to the museum with a glimpse of this much revered past of Kerala.

On your tour to Kerala, along with other natural tourist attractions like the beaches of Alleppy and the backwaters of Kerala, be sure to pay a reverential visit to the museums of Cochin as well. There are mainly three museums in Cochin – the Hill Palace Museum, Thripunithra, Pareekshith Thampuran Museum and the Museum of Kerala History.

The three museums in Cochin are each known for exhibiting various traditional and cultural aspects of ancient Kerala. Known as the oldest and the first heritage museum in Kerala, the Hill Palace Museum, Thripunithra, is a must-see for all tourists visiting Kerala. Located at a distance of just 10 km from Cochin, it used to be the residential palace of the royal family of Cochin. The year of its establishment goes back to the year 1865 AD. The architecture of the museum is in the traditional architectural style of Kerala. The museum also houses oil paintings displayed in thirteen galleries as well as 19th century paintings, manuscripts, murals and coins in possession of the royal family of Cochin.The museum was open to the public from the year 1980.

The Pareekshith Thampuran Museum is another heritage building built in the original and traditional style of Kerala's architecture. This was earlier called the Durbar Hall and contains within it 19th century oil paintings, sculptures, ancient paintings, Mughal paintings and old coins. Officially known as the museum of Kerala history, this museum an ideal one stop lesson in the history of Kerala. Home to various artefacts – including 200 year old representations of ancient Indian art and a light and sound show which highlights the history and traditions of the 2000 year old history.

So if you want to know more about the museums in Cochin, take a look at the following pages