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History connects us with our roots. Museum is the humble abode where it conserves, nurtures and protects history in its womb and makes it come alive for the present generation. The L.D. Museum envisions the same path. The perfect mingling of art and history can be observed here. During 1956, Lalbhai Dalpatbhai Institute of Indology was established with the joint efforts of Shri. Kasturbhai Lalbhai, a wellknown and prominent Ahmedabad based industrialist, and Jain Acharya Muni. Punyavijayji. Muni. Punyavijayji donated his personal collection of illustrated and un-illustrated manuscripts, bronzes and cloth paintings at time at the establishment of Lalbhai Dalpatbhai Indological Institute. With the passage of time the collection grew more and more prominent which created a need for an exclusive display of the artifacts. Thus, in 1984 a new building adjacent to the L.D. Institute of Indology was built by internationally acclaimed architect Shri. Balakrishna Doshi. The L.D. Museum was formally inaugurated by Shri. Brajkumar Nehru, the then Governor of Gujarat in 1985.
The museum was inaugurated with two designated galleries, Smt. Madhuri Desai Gallery (Ground Floor) and Muni Punyavijayji Gallery (First Floor). In 2004, a third gallery Priyakant T. Munshaw Gallery of coinage was designed.
Through the passage of time, museum has developed, flourished and added many new artifacts in its rich collection like Arvind Collection, Kasturbhai Lalbhai Collection, Gopi-Anand Beadwork Collection, Lilavati Lalbhai Woodwork Collection and The latest exclusive sectian included in this list is Pahari School Ramayana Drawings of Ayodhya Kanda collection on March 2016.
Muni Punyavijayji Gallery:
Gujarati Jaina style paintings are the highlight of this gallery. The collection was assembled by Muniji during 1940s which consists of palm leaf manuscripts, the earliest painted paper manuscript of the Shantinath Charitra dated V.S. 1453 (i.e.1396 A.D.) which is also recognized as a global treasure by UNESCO, many rare cosmological diagrams, Jaina-Sidhdha chakra yantra and other such distinctive artifacts.
Smt. Madhuri Desai Gallery:
It exhibits a wide ranging variety of sculptures narrating the artistic fervour of different styles existing in Indian heritage. The exhibit consists of artifacts from different parts of the Indian subcontinent as well from Nepal and Tibet.
Priyakant T. Munshaw Gallery of coinage:
The gallery consists of a representative collection of historical phases of coinage of India. The collection includes the earliest punched-marked coins called bentbar (c.600 B.C.), Akbar's Din-i-Ilahi coin, Jahangir's Zodiac series in silver, Adil Shah's Larin (dated 1668 A.D.) and contemporary currency.
Arvind Lalbhai Collection:
Among the noteworthy objects on display from the Shri Arvindbhai Collection, are a flamboyant Chola style Nataraja (11th century A.D.) and an exuberant Nepali/ Tibetan bronze Mandala (18th century A.D.), both are displayed on the ground Floor in Madhuri D. Desai Gallery, while an elaborately decorated Chinese/ Japanese style cupboard in wood, one can view on the First Floor in Muni Punyavijayaji Gallery. This gift has widened the scope of the various collections to grow into a Museum of Asian Art in the Gujarat region.
Kasturbhai Lalbhai Collection:
A collection of exquisite Indian Miniature paintings crafted between 17th to 19th century is showcased at our museum. This collection depicts various interesting miniature paintings of Ramayana, Court scenes, Portraits etc. The main objective to display this century old collection is to understand and appreciate the technical and artistic aspects of miniature painting.
Gopi-Anand Beadwork collection:
The beadwork art is mainly practiced in Saurashtra and Kutch region. In past, this art was a speciality for household decoration and marriage ceremonies. It is thus an embodiment of culture and history together. A whole section is devoted to this collection.
Lilavati Lalbhai Wood Work collection:
We have a wide range of wood craft collection at The L.D. Museum known as Lilavati Lalbhai wood Work collection. The display includes relief panels of Tirthankaras, 14 Dream, Ashtamangala and other symbolic forms, carved pillars and decorative panels.
Pahari School Ramayana Drawings of Ayodhya Kanda collection:
Pahari School Ramayana Drawings of Ayodhya Kanda is the latest inclusion in Gallery Section. Open to public since in 2016, the collection consists of almost 62 folios depicting various episodes from the great epic 'Ramayana'. This group of drawings have been sorted out from a historic collection of Indian art objects which was initially put together in Kolkata during the early 20th century by the leaders of the Revivalist and Modern movements spearheaded by the great painters Abanindranath and Gagnendranath Tagore.
Art Reference Library and Conservation Laboratory:
Museum also have Art Reference Library and in-house Conservation Laboratory. Over the past decades an Art Reference Library (including rare books) has grown with donation of books, further enhanced with financial assistance received from Ministry of Culture, New Delhi, 2012-2013. While talking about our Conservation Laboratory, The modest Conservation Laboratory of the Museum has a facilities for the basic conservation of miniature paintings on paper. Preliminary surface cleaning of stone sculptures and metal objects is also carried out here.