Photos

Last weekend I had been to Kolkata to meet some of my friends and relatives mainly in the occasion of Bengali New Years day (15 April). I was to go to Nandan to attend a cultural programme but took some time out to hang around Victoria Memorial.
Result: A few shots which I shall keep on sharing with TE viewers. Here is the first one.
*********************
Victoria, the only daughter of King Edward, the Duke of Kent became the Queen in 1837 at the age of 18 immediately after the death of her uncle William IV who had no legitimate children. Her reign as a monarch of 64 years (1837-1901) is the longest ever in British history.
This architectural marvel was built to commemorate Queen Victoria’s 25-year reign over India from 1876 till her death in 1901. After the Sepoy Rebellion of 1857, the British government assumed direct control of the country from East India Company and in 1876 the British parliament made Victoria the Empress of India. Built entirely of white marble, Victoria Memorial, one of India's most beautiful monuments, represent a unique combination of classical European architecture and Mughal motifs. The domed and white marble museum sprawls over 64 acres and is set in a landscaped garden at the southern side of the Kolkata's maidan (ground) near Jawaharlal Nehru Road.

The main structure is 184 ft high upto the base of the figure of Angel of Victory, which is another 16 ft high. The Memorial is situated on a 64 acres of land with the building covering an area of 338 ft x 228ft.Though the construction of the building began in 1904, it was completed only after 17 years at a cost of 10 million rupees and was formally inaugurated in 1921 by the Prince of Wales.Another view of the Memorial is presented in WS.