The Thar Heritage Museum
The Thar Heritage Museum
4.5
About
Aim of this museum is to collect and preserve historical and ancient folk art of Thar Desert for tourist scholar and young generation. Museum is founded by M.A. Author of Jaisalmer Folklore History and Architecture. This Museum Awarded by District Magistrate 2006, and Governor of Rajasthan on 15 August 2008 for preservation of folk Heritage. Museum displayed sea-fossil, documents of Jaisalmer state, coins, post cards, ancient manuscripts, weapons, musical instruments, leather containers of ghee.
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4.5
135 reviews
Excellent
79
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40
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11
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3
Terry
11 contributions
Feb 2020 • Friends
This place is really worth a visit. We spotted it from the roof of our hotel and thought we'd give it a try. The young guy looking after the place called Mr. Khatri (the owner of the collection) to come and show us around. It was absolutely fascinating. Mr. Khatri has been building his collection for 30 years. You are unlikely to see anything quite like it. Highly recommended.
Written February 16, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
BangkokLoft
Yeovil, UK568 contributions
Jan 2020 • Couples
A very good experience. We were greeted by a very nice member of staff who phoned the owner to come and give us a tour. A few minutes later he was there.
The collection is the work of 30 years and has many interesting elements but it was the enthusiastic and very knowledgable tour that sets it apart and enabled us to learn loads.
Well worth the short walk out there and tells you much about the area you are visiting and the desert people. And it only costs 100 rupees.
Give it a go!
The collection is the work of 30 years and has many interesting elements but it was the enthusiastic and very knowledgable tour that sets it apart and enabled us to learn loads.
Well worth the short walk out there and tells you much about the area you are visiting and the desert people. And it only costs 100 rupees.
Give it a go!
Written January 20, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Raewyn
9 contributions
Jan 2020 • Solo
I visited this wee museum and had a personalised tour. The young attendant was delightful and called the owner who gave me a great explanation of the things he has been carefully collecting and preserving as the old way of life changes and the handwork disappears. A delightful time that feeds the soul. A must visit and a joy to support the endeavour.
Written January 22, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
madhuLyon
Lyon22 contributions
About Thar Heritage Museum in Jaisalmer – Rajasthan INDIA
For all the tourists coming in Jaisalmer, if you like, if you want to know a little more deeply the original life of this wonderful Thar Desert ant the traditions of the village people all around, please don’t miss to visit the charming and very interesting Thar Heritage Museum. The explanations about culture and history of this place will be increasing your knowledge to appreciate Indian life and give you some important keys for a better comprehension of traditions which are, here also, going to disappear. Listen carefully your passionate guide Laxmi, founder and director of the museum, who dedicate his life for this nice museum. He is also the author of a quite interesting booklet about “Jaisalmer, folklore, history and architecture”. A must to enjoy your stay in Jaisalmer.
Madeleine Lacour
69450 [--] – France
For all the tourists coming in Jaisalmer, if you like, if you want to know a little more deeply the original life of this wonderful Thar Desert ant the traditions of the village people all around, please don’t miss to visit the charming and very interesting Thar Heritage Museum. The explanations about culture and history of this place will be increasing your knowledge to appreciate Indian life and give you some important keys for a better comprehension of traditions which are, here also, going to disappear. Listen carefully your passionate guide Laxmi, founder and director of the museum, who dedicate his life for this nice museum. He is also the author of a quite interesting booklet about “Jaisalmer, folklore, history and architecture”. A must to enjoy your stay in Jaisalmer.
Madeleine Lacour
69450 [--] – France
Written August 14, 2009
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
zoemichael
Australia7 contributions
We really enjoyed visiting Mr Khatri's museum. He is a wonderful guide with a wealth and genuine passion for local history.
Considering the museum is entirely self-funded and collected by Mr Khatri, visiting this museumis a great way to encourage rajasthan's cultural heritage and local business.
We also highly recmommend having a chat with MrKhatris (in his excellent english) for a thought provoking conversation.
Considering the museum is entirely self-funded and collected by Mr Khatri, visiting this museumis a great way to encourage rajasthan's cultural heritage and local business.
We also highly recmommend having a chat with MrKhatris (in his excellent english) for a thought provoking conversation.
Written January 17, 2009
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Daniel E
London, UK8 contributions
Sep 2011 • Couples
The Thar Heritage Museum is located down a backstreet of Jaisalmer’s main bazaar, which is a fair trek from the city fort, at least in the blistering heat that is customary for the region. The cows do a good job of blocking the main drag as they gurn on plastic bags and other rubbish they find piled up on the corner of every side street, while auto-rickshaws and motorbikes blast their horns at every available opportunity as the shop keepers call and beckon every white person that walks past. It is a busy place to say the least; full of bright colours and peculiar odours, busy people and unexpected wildlife. That only makes finding the Thar Heritage Museum more interesting, in that the location of the bulding adds yet another quirky dimension to this already out-of-the-way and less frequented attraction.
I first read about the museum in the Roughguide to Rajasthan, Delhi and Agra. The book, which I happened to be borrowing from my Sister, had so far been a trustworthy and reliable source of information on the trip so far and it had promised a rather interesting experience at this museum in particular. The Roughguide mentions that despite the exhibition being interesting enough on as it stands, it is brought to life by the sole collector of items, Mr Laxmi Khatri, who is able to accompany on your tour of the museum ‘if he is on hand’. Upon arriving at the museum, it appeared as though he was not. A young boy sat twiddling his thumbs at a table by the entrance and bolted up the stairs to unlock the museum for us as soon as we popped our heads curiously around the door. ‘Please. Go.’, he said before pelting out off the entrance through which we had came as we made our way slowly up the steps towards what we understood to be an exhibition. The room was dark and random assortments of items belonging to different areas of interest lay cluttered around the floor below shelves of nik naks associated with camels, pottery and religion. Before no time at all, Mr Kharti appeared. “Welcome to the museum!” he said as he made mad dashes about the place, turning on light switches and fans. “You are the first visitors here in over a week!”… this was almost akin to what I had been hearing from rick-shaw drivers across Rajasthan for the past two weeks – “you are my first customer of the day” they would say, as if that would make a difference to the amount of money they would receive in addition to their fee. Mr Khatri however, had an element of honesty in his voice that clung to chipped and flaking walls around the museum. He then introduced himself formally, “My name is Laxmi N. Khatri”, he said, “and you are?”. We briefly introduced ourselves and he launched straight into an academic flow about the items that surrounded us. It was a fascinating journey; not only was Mr Kharti responsible for collecting each of these items and displaying them, he also paid for the rent of the building and the maintenance of the place out of his own pocket. “It is not cheap to keep this place going” he said in a sad tone, “but I feel like I have to. People come here and they want to learn about the Thar heritage and culture, and this is the only place where they can really do that”. I pressed him on this issue as there were several museums in town that offered information and exhibitions on desert culture. “Yes, that is very true” he said, “but they are all funded by the government and therefore only exhibit things about the social elite. They do not show anything about the real lives of the working people of Jaisalmer and the Thar desert people”. He proceed to explain in great detail a whole host of items used for cooking and calculating measurements. As if this were not interesting enough, he then led the way back down the stairs we had come up and into a smaller room where he had two small exhibits; the first was called ‘Opium Party’, which comprised of a series of items arranged in such a way that shed light on how the desert men spent their evenings chasing the dragon, and, ‘The Office’, which was one of the most intriguing displays I have ever seen at any museum, ever. It consisted of a seating area and a desk, surrounded by hand written volumes documenting transactions between local business people and passing travellers from all over Asia. The exhibition also hosted scales, weights and gadgets all from the same period, which would most certainly be a fascinating for any economic historian interested in the region.
The sad thing about ‘The Office’ and every other part of the museum, was the state in which these items were in. Nothing seemed to be well kept or preserved, despite their cultural value and significance, instead they lay in piles around the floor. This was the best that Mr Kharti could do when taking his finances into account, even though he had received honours from Indian state officials and academics in the past, his museum severely lacks the funding and attention it needs. The majority of the tourists that come through Jaisalmer are part of large organised groups, that do not go to the Thar Heritage museum because of its run down state and lac of prestige. The objects and items there are only really brought to life my Mr Khatri himself and he can not cater for more than small groups of about ten tourists at a time – though he is rarely graced with such numbers. We shot a few clips of Mr Kharti in action and I am trying to work with Mr Khatri in putting together a new website for the museum, though at the present time he is seemingly difficult to contact. If you find yourself anywhere near the Thar Desert in the future, I more than recommend paying the museum a visit – it is definitely a must.
I first read about the museum in the Roughguide to Rajasthan, Delhi and Agra. The book, which I happened to be borrowing from my Sister, had so far been a trustworthy and reliable source of information on the trip so far and it had promised a rather interesting experience at this museum in particular. The Roughguide mentions that despite the exhibition being interesting enough on as it stands, it is brought to life by the sole collector of items, Mr Laxmi Khatri, who is able to accompany on your tour of the museum ‘if he is on hand’. Upon arriving at the museum, it appeared as though he was not. A young boy sat twiddling his thumbs at a table by the entrance and bolted up the stairs to unlock the museum for us as soon as we popped our heads curiously around the door. ‘Please. Go.’, he said before pelting out off the entrance through which we had came as we made our way slowly up the steps towards what we understood to be an exhibition. The room was dark and random assortments of items belonging to different areas of interest lay cluttered around the floor below shelves of nik naks associated with camels, pottery and religion. Before no time at all, Mr Kharti appeared. “Welcome to the museum!” he said as he made mad dashes about the place, turning on light switches and fans. “You are the first visitors here in over a week!”… this was almost akin to what I had been hearing from rick-shaw drivers across Rajasthan for the past two weeks – “you are my first customer of the day” they would say, as if that would make a difference to the amount of money they would receive in addition to their fee. Mr Khatri however, had an element of honesty in his voice that clung to chipped and flaking walls around the museum. He then introduced himself formally, “My name is Laxmi N. Khatri”, he said, “and you are?”. We briefly introduced ourselves and he launched straight into an academic flow about the items that surrounded us. It was a fascinating journey; not only was Mr Kharti responsible for collecting each of these items and displaying them, he also paid for the rent of the building and the maintenance of the place out of his own pocket. “It is not cheap to keep this place going” he said in a sad tone, “but I feel like I have to. People come here and they want to learn about the Thar heritage and culture, and this is the only place where they can really do that”. I pressed him on this issue as there were several museums in town that offered information and exhibitions on desert culture. “Yes, that is very true” he said, “but they are all funded by the government and therefore only exhibit things about the social elite. They do not show anything about the real lives of the working people of Jaisalmer and the Thar desert people”. He proceed to explain in great detail a whole host of items used for cooking and calculating measurements. As if this were not interesting enough, he then led the way back down the stairs we had come up and into a smaller room where he had two small exhibits; the first was called ‘Opium Party’, which comprised of a series of items arranged in such a way that shed light on how the desert men spent their evenings chasing the dragon, and, ‘The Office’, which was one of the most intriguing displays I have ever seen at any museum, ever. It consisted of a seating area and a desk, surrounded by hand written volumes documenting transactions between local business people and passing travellers from all over Asia. The exhibition also hosted scales, weights and gadgets all from the same period, which would most certainly be a fascinating for any economic historian interested in the region.
The sad thing about ‘The Office’ and every other part of the museum, was the state in which these items were in. Nothing seemed to be well kept or preserved, despite their cultural value and significance, instead they lay in piles around the floor. This was the best that Mr Kharti could do when taking his finances into account, even though he had received honours from Indian state officials and academics in the past, his museum severely lacks the funding and attention it needs. The majority of the tourists that come through Jaisalmer are part of large organised groups, that do not go to the Thar Heritage museum because of its run down state and lac of prestige. The objects and items there are only really brought to life my Mr Khatri himself and he can not cater for more than small groups of about ten tourists at a time – though he is rarely graced with such numbers. We shot a few clips of Mr Kharti in action and I am trying to work with Mr Khatri in putting together a new website for the museum, though at the present time he is seemingly difficult to contact. If you find yourself anywhere near the Thar Desert in the future, I more than recommend paying the museum a visit – it is definitely a must.
Written November 6, 2011
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sandip Agarwal
New Delhi, India149 contributions
Very good collections of rajasthani heritage.Owner himself is the person who make collection of all the things.He is very well behaved and gentle.He himself guide us about his collections.Good place.
Written February 12, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Gopalakrishna H
Mangalore, India138 contributions
Displays old sea fossils found in the desert, camel and horse ornaments, old musical instruments, arms, old documents, coins and ancient manuscripts. Of particular interest is the replica of a typical marwari business office of yesteryears and the 100kg. containers to transport ghee on camel backs.
Written November 21, 2010
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sara R
utrecht1 contribution
This small museum contains an interesting collection of old user- and art-objects that are typical of Rajasthani culture. The collector and owner Laxmi will show you around personally and explain what the items were (and in some cases are still) used for. Definitely worth a visit!
Written November 29, 2009
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
surya77
Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany456 contributions
As a collector myself and someone feeling very passionate about the preservation of historical and and ancient folk art I would like to urge everyone to support Mr Laxmi Narayan Khatri by visiting his museum, THE THAR HERITAGE MUSEUM in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.. His love for his heritage is so obvious as also the difficulty he is facing in trying to maintain his museum on his own. He has done a brilliant job but needs your support and appreciation. After all, it's not easy to open a museum !!!
Written November 21, 2009
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
timing of puppet show? is this the same Desert culture museum in jaisalmer?
Written September 16, 2018
The Thar Heritage Museum and the Desert cultural centre are two different places. The puppet show is in the Desert Cultural Centre, night show.
Written September 28, 2018
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