Museum of Rajas'

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The Museum of Rajas' is in the heart of Sylhet, a city in Bangladesh. The museum's mission is to preserve and share the rich history of the great ‘Raja Family’ of Sylhet keeping the Zamindar and Mystic poet Dewan Hason Raja Chowdhury in the centre, and the folk literature, folk music and mystic poets of Sylhet Division. The museum promotes a greater public awareness of the rich cultural legacy of Sylhet. In pursuit of these goals, this museum collects archival materials related to Bangla folk literature, music and poets from the greater Sylhet region, and preserves these collections in a repository, open to the public. The museum also encourages and facilitates research on folk literature and history. The results of this research are made available to the public through museum exhibits, publications and presentations.

[edit] Sponsor and patrons

The Museum of Rajas' is sponsored by the Educationist Dewan Talibur Raja Trust.

The Chief Patrons are Syeda Mina Raja, Fatema Nahreen Raja, Fatema Nazrin Raja and Dewan Mohammad Tasawwar Raja. Mrs. Mosleha Monira Raja is the Coordinator and Patron.

The idea and designing of this unique museum was conceived by Dewan Mohammad Tasawwar Raja, editor of the book Hason Raja’s Oeuvre (Hason Raja Shomogro) and great grandson of Dewan Hason Raja.

[edit] Museum logo

The meanings of various aspects of the logo of Museum of Rajas’ are:

• The four equal squares symbolise the four districts of greater Sylhet (presently Sylhet Division). It also means that exhibits of famous personalities of four generations of the Raja family will be placed in the museum.

• The Red Square with golden crown symbolises the influence, strength and valour of the Rajas’, who were the renowned Zamindar (Landlord) of Sylhet.

• The Blue Square with an open book and a lighted candle symbolises the thirst for knowledge, earnest desire to acquire divinity by the Rajas’ and the folk and mystic poets of Sylhet. The colour blue represents the ever-high Blue Sky and vast Blue Ocean.

• The Green Square with an Ektara (folk musical instrument) symbolises the great and extraordinary contributions made by the Rajas in the field of folk literature along with other famous folk and mystic poets of Sylhet. The colour green represents the lush green nature of Bangladesh and its evergreen peoples.

• The Black Square with the name of the museum (MUSEUM OF RAJAS’) in white symbolises that though life seems to be coloured, the ultimate truth, as the Rajas’ and the mystic poets could identify, is simply white (life) and black (death).

• The words, “Raja – Kunjo, Sylhet, Bangladesh” have been incorporated to give out the location of the museum.

[edit] Location and inauguration

It is located in "Raja - Kunjo", Zinda Bazar, Sylhet - 3100, Bangladesh. Email: museumofrajas@gmail.com

The formal inauguration of this unique museum was held on June 30, 2006 / 16 Ashar 1413, Friday at 4 pm. Moving out from usual inaugural ceremony of having single chief guest, Museum of Rajas' has created a history. For the first time in the history of Bangladesh, this museum was inaugurated by all well wishers present by making sound of hundreds of Ek Tara (a folk musical instrument) together.