ethno museology

Tribal museums of odisha

Odisha State Tribal Museum

The Institute has a unique Tribal Museum which is functioning through its exhibits, research projects and planned activities as a cultural centre that attracts a large number of visitors from India and abroad.

The Institute has organized a number of exhibitions inside and outside the State. The new ‘Odisha State Tribal Museum’ has been set up to cater to the needs of the visitors and researchers. Steps have been taken for Live Demonstration of Art and Crafts by Tribal Artists and Artisans in the Museum Complex on all working days throughout the year by engagement of 16 Tribal Artists on payment of remuneration on monthly basis to demonstrate and prepare different kinds of culturally significant Arts & Crafts creating facilities for sale of their product. This will be a milestone for preservation, documentation, display and demonstration of the rich tribal cultural heritage of Odisha.
The major activities and achievements of this ethnographic museum
  • Preservation & Display of more than 4000 rare and culturally significant tribal art and artifacts in 5 Halls (Fully Air Conditioned)
  • A New PTG Gallery (Fully Air Conditioned) showing 3D representation of their unique life style
  • The Display Halls are fully digitized and provided with  interactive touch screen kiosks
  • 7 replicas of Tribal Huts of Santal, Juang, Gadaba, Saora, Kandha, Gond & Chuktia Bhunjia made in the traditional style
  • Live demonstration of Tribal Art & Crafts
  • Skill development training programmes for tribal artisans on traditional and languishing tribal art and crafts.
  • Production and exhibition of 11 Documentary Videos/ Films on 05 PTGs & 04 Tribes
  • Organisation of National Tribal Crafts Mela  and National Tribal Dance Festival annually
  • Participation in Annual State Level Adivasi Mela and National Tribal Festival organized by MoTA, GoI, New Delhi.
  • Maintenance of a fully air conditioned Auditorium (120 seater) for staging tribal dances and exhibiting tribal films.
  • Establishment of a Tribal Food Court and Souvenir Shop
The “Museum of Tribal Arts and Artifacts” popularly known as Tribal Museum is located at the CRP Square in Bhubaneswar, was established in 1953. Today the museum is a major site of tourist interest as it gives an insight into the life of a tribal. On display are immaculate replicas of tribal huts of various tribal communities and artefacts collected from different tribal groups in Odisha.
The “Museum of Tribal Arts and Artefacts” popularly known as Tribal Museum was established in the year 1953. Odisha has over 60 tribal communities adds significance to this unique museum which is the reason and it is also known as “Museum of Man”.
The aesthetically built museum is a must visit if you are in Bhubaneswar. For tourist’s one pertinent point – a brief about culture of Odisha is essential though not binding if you are visiting the museum helps you understand the displays just a bit better.
On display are the way of life of a tribal in the region which includes their attire, traditions, ornaments, food habits. The museum also displays replicas of Tribal dwellings and artefacts.
The museum displays elements of anthropological interest and gives an insight on the different stages of evolution of tribal cultures.
The library here is also a great source of information and documentation of tribal life.
There are shops in the museum premises selling souvenirs too & the compound is equipped with a food court, making it a pleasant outing with friends and family alike.
The idea of setting up a tribal museum in SCSTRTI (Scheduled Cast and Scheduled Tribes Research and Training Institute) located at C.R.P.F. square, Bhubaneswar was originally conceived in 1987, but materialised on March 5, 2001. The exhibits of the museum represent the elementary human cultural values that had shaped our past, are determining our present and will be guiding our future. So the Museum of Tribal Arts and Artifacts can be conceptually labelled as “Museum of Man”. In common parlance, “Museum of Man” means an integrated institution which disseminates knowledge covering the human species in its totality. In the process of evolution, man acquired “culture”, the ultimate tool with the help of which it tried to adapt to the different types of environmental condition. The continuous endeavour to adapt to the changing environment had given rise to variations in man himself and his culture. In the post-modern age, “Museum of Man” connotes tribal culture in it’s ambience as people of such cultures refer to themselves as “Sons of Man”. In other words, museum of tribal cultures or tribal museum can be valued naturally as a “Museum of Man”. This museum has approximately 1900 displayed tribal artifacts in five halls. They exhibit dresses and ornaments, dhokra items, dances and musical instruments, hunting implements, fishing nets, weapons of offence and defence, personal belongings, arts and photographs.
‘The Museum of Man’ exhibit dresses and ornaments, dhokra items, dances and musical instruments, hunting implements, fishing nets, weapons of offence and defence, personal belongings, arts and photographs.