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I2 MUSEUM FÜR INDISCHE KUNST, Berlin- Dahlem. Plan of the exhibition. I. Archaeological collections. 2. Archaic period : Bharhut. 3 . Archaic period : Säñci. 4. Art of Gandhãra. 5 . Mathurä, archaic and pre-classical period. 6. Mathurä, classical period. 7. Bodhgayä and Deogarh, classical period. 8. Early Middle-ages, central India and Räjasthän. IO. Middle- ages, Räjasthän. I I. Middle-ages, Bijar/ Bengal. I 2. Middle-ages, central India and Orissa. I 3. Middle-ages, south India. 14. Indian arts and crafts. rs. Temple. 16. Miniature. 17. Nepal. 18. Tibet. 19. Indonesia. 20. Ancient Siam. 21. Reliefs from Burma. Tiirfati collectìom: 22. Sculptures from central Asia, 23. Wall- painting from central Asia. 24. Manuscript from central Asia. 25, Temple. 26. Small discoveries from central Asia. 27. Painted pavement. 28. Images from donators, central Asia. 29. Manicheen fragments and cloth-paintings.

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Museum of Indian Art 223

The Museum of Indian Art which was opened on 7 October 1971 contains objects of art from India, Indo-China, Indonesia and Central Asia which belonged to the Museum für Völkerkunde before being transferred to the new museum. Two large collections in particular make this museum by far the most comprehensive and significant collection of Indo-Asiatic art in Germany, namely the numerous acquisitions of stone sculpture from India and the murals, sculpture and small objects brought back by the Royal Prussian Expedition to Turfan in Central Asia.

A selection of the museum’s most outstanding pieces gives for the first time a general view of all the spheres covered by its collections. It was indeed difficult to devise a means of showing specimens of such heterogeneous articles, ranging from sculptures to small objects and miniatures to murals, in a logical and yet attractive way. The best solution was felt to be a very free arrangement laying emphasis where required by means of accentuated

lighting. The relationship between an individual exhibit and an area of ad- joining objects belonging to the same academic category is made clear by

13 MUSEUM FÜR INDISCHE KUNST, Berlin- Dahlem. Display of fragments of mural

skilful use of concentrated and diffused lighting, and the visitor is thus unconsciously led along in the direction one wishes him to follow. The rooms themselves fade into the background. Their only purpose is to ensure con- tinuity. Their architecture must not obtrude itself, even where the height of the rooms varies in order to provide the right proportions as background for the different exhibits. In other words, the prime objective was always to establish the closest possible relationship between the work of art on the one hand and the beholder on the other. The architect in charge was Fritz Borne- mann.

An illustrated catalogue with short introductory texts has been published as a guide to the exhibition. An increasing number of free supplements to

Paintings at Comfortable and unobstrusive tools.

small d i s h m from the wall-

224 Herbert Härtel

14 MUSEUM FÜ, INDISCHE KUNST, Berlin- Dahlem. On the upper floor, presentation of the excavations made by an archaeological mission of the museum on the hill of Sonkh (Mathurä). In the middle of the room (not to be seen on the photograph), stratigraphical bloc.

this guide have also been prepared. These are placed next to the object or group of objects which they describe.

The course to be followed through the exhibition can be seen from the ground plan. The visitor enters the museum through the Hall of Sculpture and continues via smaller exhibits and arts and crafts.

The Indian miniatures are to be found in a specially prepared small niche- like cabinet. Next comes the section on Nepal. Tibet, Indo-China and Indonesia, leading into the rooms and galleries which house the murals and smaller objects from the Turfan collection. A particular attraction in this section is the Cupola which has been built to house the original paintings.

The permanent exhibition is supplemented by two smaller displays. Stairs in the centre of the exhibition area invite the visitor either to descend to a basement or to climb up to a gallery. The basement room is an ante-chamber to the study collection and is used to show material which cannot be included in the permanent exhibition. It is a kind of studio in which the objects on display are quietly changed from time to time. These objects often belong to groups which can only be represented by one or two pieces in the permanent exhibition. This is quite natural when one considers that the main exhibition contains only 567 items out of the total collection of I~,OOO items listed in the catalogue. The exhibition of a Graeco-Roman influenced sculpture and plaster figures of the Gandhãra School which is in the studio at the moment is to be followed by an exhibition of Indian iconography consisting of sculpture and pictures covering all aspects of Hinduism.

The stairs to the gallery lead to another world: it contains documentation on the excavations being carried out by the Museum of Indian Art on the hill called Sonkh in the Mathurä district of northern India. Photographs and plans as well as films and slides for individual viewing take the visitor through the different stages of a ‘dig’ and give him an insight into the dose collabora- tion between archaeologists and research historians.

[Translated from German]