150-year-old Buddha statue restored

KOLKATA: The state Information and Cultural Affairs department has restored a 150-year-old statue of Gautam Buddha in the State Archeological Museum.

The brass statue measuring 22.5 cm by 20.5 cm was found when some people were digging a pond under the 100 days work scheme at Polba in Hooghly 15 days ago. Initiative has been taken to assess the archeological value of the same.

However, as per the preliminary opinion of the experts it was at least 150-year-old and they are yet to assess how the idol came to Polba's Sheikhpara as there was no connection of such art work with the place. A state government official said that they came to know about the statue after going through a Facebook post and officials of the Information and Cultural Affairs department went to Polba. There they came to know that the local panchayat had handed it over to Polba police station.

The officials then contacted the police and after some paperwork they took the idol from the police. "The statue was taken to the State Archeological Museum at Behala where it has been washed and experts are assessing its archeological value and if it has any historical significance," said the official, adding that soon it will be displayed in one of the seven galleries at the museum. The State Archeological Museum was set up in 1962. It is well known for its rich collection of rare tools used in the early middle and late stone ages from Susunia in Bankura.

There are also proto-historic antiquities from Pandu Rajar Dhibi in Burdwan. Terracotta work, sculptures and stucco from the Pala, Gupta and Maurya period are present in the museum.