Madurai Government Museum

Madurai


Attached to the very interesting Gandhi Memorial Museum, this is a sadly neglected collection of archaeological finds, sculpture, bronzes, costumes and paintings.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Madurai attractions

1. Gandhi Memorial Museum

0.02 MILES

Housed in a 17th-century Nayak queen's palace, this impressive museum contains a moving, comprehensive account of Gandhi's life and India’s struggle for…

2. Pudhu Mandapa

1.38 MILES

This 16th-century pillared hall stands outside the Meenakshi Amman Temple, opposite the eastern gopuram. It's crammed with colourful textile and crafts…

3. St Mary's Cathedral

1.41 MILES

This 20th-century neo-Gothic construction's simple stained-glass windows and bold-orange vaulting are offset by a magnificent blue-and-white exterior with…

4. Tirumalai Nayak Palace

1.41 MILES

What Madurai's Meenakshi Amman Temple is to Nayak religious architecture, Tirumalai Nayak's crumbling palace is to the secular. It’s said to be only a…

5. Temple Art Museum

1.44 MILES

Inside the eastern gopuram of the Meenakshi Amman Temple, you'll find the Nayak-period Thousand Pillared Hall (with 985 columns) on your right. Now the…

6. Mariamman Teppakkulam Tank

1.49 MILES

This vast tank, 3km east of the old city, covers an area as big as the Meenakshi Amman Temple and is the site of the incredible annual Teppam (Float)…

7. Meenakshi Amman Temple

1.51 MILES

The colourful abode of the triple-breasted warrior goddess Meenakshi (‘fish-eyed’ – an epithet for perfect eyes in classical Tamil poetry) is generally…