Mymensingh Museum: Height of neglect

Mymensingh Museum is unable to display its wealth of artefacts to advantage due to the negligence of the concerned authorities over the last 17 years.
The museum was established in 1969 by the then Deputy Commissioner of Mymensingh at the “baganbari” of zamindar Madan Babu on Amrita Babu Road in the district town. Run initially by the Mymensingh Municipality, it was later placed under the charge of the Department of Archaeology in 1995 through a gazette notification.
The museum, the only one of its kind in greater Mymensingh, used to be a popular draw for the public. However, now it attracts merely 10-20 visitors a day.
The 200 rare relics, sculptures, metal and wooden works collected from Muktagacha zamindars' palaces in the Mymensingh region are in jeopardy due to poor preservation and display techniques as well as poor lighting, and inadequate space.
The relics collected from various locations in Muktagacha, Gouripur and Atharabari are a testimony to the zamindars' refined tastes.
The museum showcases elephant skulls, deer antlers, candle clusters, a sofa set made of wood and an elephant's tusk, statues fashioned out of white and black stone by Italian sculptors and a statue made of plaster of Paris.
Priceless manuscripts are kept in iron shelves with no scientific preservation system. Handwritings on palm leaves take the visitors to the past heritage of the country. However, the relics are kept in the open corridor of the museum and gathering dust.
Office Assistant Mohammad Saiful Islam, now also Assistant Custodian-in-Charge, said that due to space constraints, it was not possible to display the ancient coins and valuable manuscripts.
The museum has received 10 showcases recently and now some valuable relics will be displayed, he said. But more showcases are needed to display all the relics, opined museum sources.
Apparently, the renovation of the museum began in 1999 and some 150 coins of the Victorian era were handed over for safe custody to the Department of Archaeology but these coins are yet to be put on display due to space constraints.
The post of Assistant Custodian has been lying vacant since February 2008 and the museum has suffered.
Many items like earthenware, a stuffed peacock, coins of different eras, a big umbrella used for hunting by Muktagacha zaminders, ancient bricks with artistic designs and calligraphy on paper and palm leaves found here earlier are now missing from the museum, lamented some visitors. Many visitors also question if there is even a list of all the relics displayed at the museum.
Terming Mymensingh museum as “unique”, Dr. Ataur Rahman, regional director of Department of Archaeology said, due to space constraints it was not possible to showcase the museum within or outside the country.
Shahadat Hossain Khan Hilu, secretary of Bahurupi Natya Sangstha said that the rare relics need proper preservation as these are an integral part of the country's history and heritage. There are some relics at the museum which are not found even in the national museum but these are uncared for.
Though the museum is under the Cultural Affairs Ministry, State Minister for Cultural Affairs Advocate Promod Mankin, MP, from Mymensingh has not yet visited the museum. The minister was unavailable for comment, despite repeated attempts by this correspondent.