No. 102 · Culture, Public Realm & Mobility
Telhara Museum
Telhara, Nalanda, Bihar
- Location
- Telhara, Nalanda, Bihar
- Client
- BSBCCL
- Status
- Completed 2023
- Built-up area
- 5,000 m²
- Site area
- 5 acres
- Project value
- ₹25 crore
- Completed
- January 2023
- Sector
- Culture, Public Realm & Mobility
A Museum in the village of Telhara, Nalanda, for the finds of the ancient Telhara mahavihara, built in brick with terraced massing that recalls the form of a stupa.
About the project
Telhara, a village in the Nalanda district of Bihar, is the site of an ancient mahavihara. The Museum built here houses the artefacts, sculptures and inscriptions found in and around the site, from the Mauryan, Gupta and Pala periods. It was completed in January 2023 for BSBCCL, on a five-acre site with a built-up area of about 5,000 square metres.
Brick and terraces
The building is built in brick, and its mass rises in terraces in a stupa-like form, so that the Museum takes its shape from the Buddhist Architecture whose finds it holds. Because the collection comes from the mahavihara and the land around it, visitors meet these objects close to where they were found.
A gallery for each period
Inside, the galleries are arranged by period, each devoted to the art, culture and way of life of the people who lived in the region at that time. The plans also included a life-size replica of a Buddhist monastery, based on the excavations at the site, to show visitors the daily life of the monks who lived there, and a section on Nalanda University.
ARCH-EN DESIGN was the Architectural and Engineering consultant for BSBCCL.
Our role
Architectural and Engineering consultant for BSBCCL
Culture, Public Realm & Mobility
