Amar Mahal Museum

Amar Mahal Museum is a popular tourist attraction, which served as the family residence of the Dogra Dynasty. The palace was built by King Raja Amar of the Dogra Dynasty during 1890 using red sand stone.

Planned and designed by a French architect, the architectural marvel was converted into a museum exhibiting a rich collection of paintings, books, inscriptions and artefacts.

The structure of the building is identical to European castles, as there are sloping roofs with turrets and tall towers. There are extended passages on three sides of the monument, covered by sloping corrugated tin roofs.

Along with wooden framework, the highlight of the first storey of the palace building is the French windows. These windows illustrate classical Greek architectural style in triangular projections fitted over ornate false columns.

Durbar Hall of the art gallery displays family portraits of the rulers of Jammu and Kashmir along with a collection of Pahari paintings. The main highlight of the museum is the throne of Maharaja Hari Singh made of 120 kg gold.

To the delight of historians, the museum houses over twenty five thousand books on history, among which the volumes associated with Raja Amar Singh are noteworthy.