Bangalore - Karnataka.com - Mysore |
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Situated
among fertile fields, and skrited by wooded hills, Mysore was the
capital of the Wodeyar
rulers, who were governors of southern Karnataka under the Vijayanagar
kings. The Wodeyar dynasty ruled almost uninterrupted from 1399 until
Independence, except for the 38 - year rule of the Muslim warlord
Haider Ali and his son, Tipu Sultan, in the 18th century. Modern Mysore
is
the creation of Tipu Sultan who, in 1793, levelled the old city and
built the present town. Today, Mysore is an important cultural centre,
with the largest university in Karnataka. It is also renowned for its
ivory work, silk-weaving, sandalwood incense and carvings. Several elegant public buildings, erected under the Wodeyars, enhance the wide, tree-lined streets. In the heart of the city is the Amba Vilas Palace. To its west is Jaganmohan Palace, built in 1902 to mark the coronation ceremony of Krishnaraja III. It partly obscures a Neo Classical structure, now the Chamarajendra Art Gallery, which houses an interesting collection of disparate objects including antique furniture, musical instruments, ceramics and ivory. On its top floor is a splendid collection of musical instruments, as well as magnificent paintings by the renowned 19th century artist from Kerala, Raja Ravi Verma. Near the northwestern corner of Amba Vilas Palace is Krishnaraja Circle, where a statue of Krishnaraja Wodeyar stands beneath a pavilion. The Sayyaji Rao Road that leads out from this circle is the principal shopping centre of the town. A short distance away is the Government House, the seat of the British Residents from 1805. Nearby, the Cathedral of St Philomena, with a stained-glass interior, is a new Neo-Gothic structure, completed in 1959. In the weatern part of the city is the Neo-Classical Manasa Gangotri, the campus of Mysore University. The Oriental Research Institute here house a collection of Sanskrit manuscripts, while the Folklore Museum has one of the most important ethnographic collection of South Indian toys, Puppets and household objects, as well as teo wooden Chariots. On the way to Chamundi Hill, 3 km (2 miles) southeast of Mysore, is Lalitha Mahal Palace, built in 1930. Formerly a private royal guest house, it is now a hotel. About halfway up the hill is the Nandi monolith, dating to 1659. Carved out of a single boulder, it is 7.5 m (25 ft) long and 5 m (16 ft) high. The richly decorated bull is depicted crouching. The Chamundeshvari Temple, at the summit of the hill, was built in the 17th century by the Wodeyars and was later refurbished. It houses a beautifulily decorated idol of Chamundeshvari, the family deity of the Wodeyar kings. |
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