National Museum to showcase finest silver treasures from India and Denmark

New Delhi, Nov 17 (IANS) Showcasing the finest silver treasures from India and Denmark, Museum Kolding and the National Museum in New Delhi will open the joint exhibition in the beginning of March, 2023.

The exhibition "Silver treasures from Denmark and India" is focused on the Danish and Indian silver artefacts where both museums will show the best silver objects from their collections. Elucidating the beauty and magnificence of silver craftsmanship in both the countries, the exhibition will showcase the best selection of 200 objects in total. For the first time, at the National Museum visitors will be able to see the parallel traditions of the Indian and Danish silver objects.

The collaboration and exhibition is under the recently agreed cultural exchange programme between India and Denmark for the years 2022 to 2026. A Memorandum of Understanding for the exhibition was signed and exchanged between the National Museum and the Museum Kolding in New Delhi on Thursday.

On the occasion, Freddy Svane, Danish ambassador to India, said that "I am very happy to note that Museum Kolding and National Museum in New Delhi will together open a silver exhibition, silver treasures from Denmark and India in the beginning of March". He added that "The exhibition will focus upon similarities and differences in Danish and Indian silversmithing, where both the museums will showcase best silver objects from their collections. We are looking forward to how the exhibition will be perceived by Indian audiences."

Lily Pandeya, Director General National Museum and Joint Secretary, Ministry of Culture, said that, "The National Museum India has a substantial collection of exquisite silver objects which belong to a vast timeline, starting from the beginning of the Indian civilization to the modern era. However, for this exhibition, to understand the story of Indian silver alongside the Danish silver around 100 objects have been selected from the reserve collection of the National Museum India to highlight the diverse and dynamic craftsmanship of Indian silver. This exhibition will indeed be one of its kind where the splendour of Indian and Danish silver together will be a delight for the audiences."

Rune Lundberg, Director of Museum Kolding, said that, "I am very excited that Museum Kolding is invited to be part of the cultural exchange programme between India and Denmark. We are delighted to be working with the National Museum in New Delhi and look forward to showcasing the best of the museum's silver collection and we are of course very excited about how our Danish silver will be received by the Indian public. Together with the National Museum, we have put together an exhibition that shows the best of the museum's collection and the Gangsted Foundation's collection, that focuses on the diversity of Danish and Indian silver traditions."