Case study 06 / 10 · Culture, Public Realm & Mobility

Finds shown where they were found

Telhara Museum, Telhara, Nalanda

A brick Museum in the village of an ancient mahavihara, rising in terraces in a stupa-like form.

Project: Telhara Museum
Location: Telhara, Nalanda, Bihar
Client: BSBCCL
Our role: Architectural and Engineering consultant for BSBCCL
Built-up area: 5,000 m²
Site area: 5 acres
Project value: ₹25 crore
Status: Completed January 2023

The brief

A Museum for the artefacts, sculptures and inscriptions found in and around the ancient Telhara mahavihara, from the Mauryan, Gupta and Pala periods, built for BSBCCL.

The site

A 5-acre site in Telhara, a village in the Nalanda district of Bihar, close to the excavated mahavihara.

The idea

Let the building take its shape from the Buddhist Architecture whose finds it holds: built in brick, its mass rises in terraces in a stupa-like form.

Because the collection comes from the mahavihara and the land around it, visitors meet these objects close to where they were found.

Section diagram of the idea, not to scale. It explains the design principles and is not the building section.

1
Brick terracesThe mass rises in terraces in a stupa-like form.
2
Galleries by periodEach devoted to the art, culture and way of life of its time: Mauryan, Gupta and Pala.
3
The mahavihara nearbyThe objects are shown close to the site they came from.

The design

4.1

Brick and terraces

The Museum is built in brick, and its terraced mass recalls the form of a stupa.

4.2

A gallery for each period

The galleries are arranged by period. The plans also included a life-size replica of a Buddhist monastery, based on the excavations, and a section on Nalanda University.

Outcome

ARCH-EN DESIGN was the Architectural and Engineering consultant for BSBCCL. The Museum, of about 5,000 m², was completed in January 2023.

CompletedJanuary 2023

Project details and photographs

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