The artistic and historic museum is situated in the hearts of capital of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram formerly known as Trivandrum.

Napier Museum is an excellent piece of architecture and reflects the glimpse of the rich cultural heritage of Kerala. Also known as Government Art Museum, Napier Museum was named after the former Madras Governor General, John Napier. The architecture of the museum is a brilliant example of the mixture of Kerala, Mughal, Chinese, and Italian Styles. Museum have an art gallery the SreeChitra gallery which consists of some very rare collection of paintings by Raja Ravi Varma and Roerich among others, and fascinating works from the Mughal, Rajput and Tanjore schools of art.Not only this the museum pays a contribute to the art and culture of other countries such as China, Tibet & Bali by including some painting pieces from these countries.

History

The building of the museum has some fantastic architectural works. Built in the 19th century, the building was such designed that it has natural air conditioning system. It is a power houseof some brilliant archaeological and historic artifacts, and consist some bronze idols, ancient ornaments, a temple chariot and ivory carvings. In correspondence to the care of nature, use of plastic bags is banned in the museum premises. 
The old building of the museum which was established in 1855 was redesigned and constructed in 1874 and then named after the governor general of Madras, Lord Napier.

Design

This brilliant piece of architecture was designed by the consulting architect of the Government of Madras, Robert Chisholm and got completed in year 1880. With gothic roof and minarets, the Napier Museum is a landmark in the city known for its unique ornamentation and architectural style. The natural air conditioning system is an excellent example of Indo-Saracen style of architecture and designing.

Collections

The museum is a power house of brilliant art pieces. It has some bronze idols, a chariot temple, and ancient ornaments which are of very historic importance. Not only this SreeChitra Art Gallery of the museum is collection of works from Raja Ravi Varma and Nicholas Roerich, and some examples of Mughal and Tanjore art.

There is a zoological garden also in the museum which ios one of the oldest zoo in our country. This Zoo was established in 1857 and is spread over 55 acres (220,000 m2) of land.

How to Reach

By Train

Thiruvananthapuram (formerly Trivandrum) is a major railway station in South India and is connected by rail network with almost every important and major stations of the country including Jammu, Delhi,Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Howrah and Hyderabad by direct trains.

By Air

Trivandrum International airport is just 10 km away from the heart of the city. The airport is well linked with all major air terminals in India and many cities abroad. Direct flights are available from Trivandrum to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore. Trivandrum is connected to Singapore, Colombo, Muscat, Saudi and many other gulf countries. Pre-paid taxi services are available from airport to other places in city. The charges are about Rs 15 per km.

By Road

Kerala Road Transport Corporation buses operates ordinary, fast, super-fast and Volvo buses from Trivandrum to all cities in Kerala and many cities in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Private bus operators run deluxe tourist buses from Trivandrum to Bangalore, Chennai and Kozhikode daily. The charge is about Rs. 3 – Rs. 4 per km.

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