Gundert Museum is a heritage museum located at

Thalassery Thalassery () (also called Tellicherry) is a city and municipality on the Malabar Coast in Kannur district in the state of Kerala, India, bordered by the districts of Mahe and Kozhikode. Thalassery municipality has a population of just under ...

, Kerala. It was originally the residence of

Hermann Gundert Hermann Gundert (Stuttgart, 4 February 1814 – 25 April 1893) was a German missionary, scholar, and linguist, as well as the maternal grandfather of German novelist and Nobel laureate Hermann Hesse. Gundert is chiefly known for his contribu ...

, a German missionary who is remembered for his contributions to the

Malayalam language Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry ( Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam wa ...

. It was known as Gundert Bungalow before turning into a museum and was constructed in the 1800's. In 2022, it was converted into a museum by the

Kerala Government The Government of Kerala (abbreviated as GoK), also known as the Kerala Government, is the administrative body responsible for governing the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. ...

as a tribute to Gundert. It was from this bungalow that Gundert published the first language dictionary in Malayalam and the first Malayalam daily Rajyasamacharam and Paschimdodayam. The museum houses the Hermann Hesse Library, a collection of rare books, the Julie Gundert Hall, the Gundert Statue and the Digital Book Archive.

Overview

Gundert Bungalow was the residence of Hermann Gundert, who lived in

for 20 years. A German missionary, scholar and linguist, he came to Thalassery in 1839 and continued to live and work there with his wife Julie for 20 years . Ill health forced him to return to Germany in 1859. Gundert Bungalow is a heritage building. Its construction is in orthodox Kerala architectural style. It has tiled roof and large verandahs which run along all four sides. It has wooden doors and windows. The craftsmen have used

laterite Laterite is a soil type rich in iron and aluminium and is commonly considered to have formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are of rusty-red coloration, because of high iron oxide content. They develop by intensive and prolo ...

stones and red clay roof tiles. Kuyyali River flows close to Gundert Bungalow. In the museum, Gundert's life story is told through descriptions. It was renovated into a museum at a cost of Rs 2.21 crore and was opened to public on 7 May 2022. The renovation work was completed under the Thalassery Heritage Tourism Project.

References

{{authority control Museums in Kerala