Cooch Behar Palace is a landmark in Cooch Behar city,

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

. It was designed in the Italian Renaissance architecture style and was built in 1887, during the reign of Maharaja Nripendra Narayan of the Koch dynasty. It is currently a museum.

History

The Cooch Behar Palace is noted for its elegance and grandeur. It is a brick-built double-story structure in the Classical Italian architecture covering an area of . The whole structure is long and wide and is on rests above the ground. The Palace is fronted on the ground and first floors by a series of arcaded verandahs with their piers arranged alternately in single and double rows. At the southern and northern ends, the Palace projects slightly and in the center is a projected porch providing an entrance to the Durbar Hall. The Hall has an elegantly shaped metal dome which is topped by a cylindrical

louver A louver (American English) or louvre (Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, see spelling differences) is a window blind or window shutter, shutter with horizontal wikt:slat, slats that are angle ...

type ventilator. This is high from the ground and is in the style of the

Renaissance architecture Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...

. The intros of the dome is carved in stepped patterns and Corinthian columns support the base of the cupola. This adds variegated colors and designs to the entire surface. There are various halls in the palace and rooms that include the grand Durbar Hall or the hall of audience, Drawing Rooms, Dining Hall, Billiard Room, Library, Bed Rooms, Toshakhana, Ladies Gallery and Vestibules. The artifact and precious objects that these rooms and halls used to contain are now lost. The original palace was partially a 3 storeyed structure, but was subsequently destroyed by the 1897 Assam earthquake. The palace shows the acceptance of European

idealism Idealism in philosophy, also known as philosophical realism or metaphysical idealism, is the set of metaphysics, metaphysical perspectives asserting that, most fundamentally, reality is equivalent to mind, Spirit (vital essence), spirit, or ...

of the Koch kings. According to the List of Monuments of National Importance in West Bengal the Cooch Behar Palace is an ASI listed monument.

Architecture

The Rajbari or the Cooch Behar Palace is a grand monument constructed in the Italian Renaissance form of architecture. The entire monument extends gracefully over an area of 51,000 square feet; about 390 feet in length and 296 feet in width; It's a brick-built structure. Standing 125 feet tall from the ground, the monument features an entrance on the ground floor, leading through a projected porch to the Durbar Hall. The first floor has a series of beautiful arcaded verandas with alternately arranged piers in double and single rows. The palace houses over 50 rooms including bedrooms, dressing rooms, billiard room, kitchen, dining hall, dancing hall, library, Tosha khana and the ladies gallery.

Durbar Hall

A splendid porch positioned in the center of the monument serves as an entrance to Rajbari through the Durbar Hall. The Durbar Hall has a beautiful metal dome with a cylindrical louvre on the top that also acts as a ventilator. The dome is at 124 feet high from the ground level and is built in the traditional Italian Renaissance architecture. The dome also is beautifully carved in step pattern and rests on four arches supported by huge Corinthian columns adorned with a lantern on the top. Several small yet elegant balconies also surround the dome of the Durbar Hall.

Gallery

The Cooch Behar Palace or the Cooch Behar Rajbari, Cooch Behar District, West Bengal, India 01.jpg The Cooch Behar Palace or the Cooch Behar Rajbari, Cooch Behar District, West Bengal, India 02.jpg The Cooch Behar Palace or the Cooch Behar Rajbari, Cooch Behar District, West Bengal, India 03.jpg

References

External links