Marble Palace Zoo, Kolkata, West Bengal India

The Marble Palace, a regal mansion was built by Raja Rajendra Mullick in 1835 in North Kolkata. The palace is famous for numerous attractive Western sculptures, Victorian furniture and paintings by both Indian and European artists. The hallways of the palace are adorned with large clocks, chandeliers, antiques, curios, marble statues, paintings, and busts of kings and queens. The marble wall and floors, floor to ceiling mirrors and its collection of rare birds has made the palace renowned.  Raja Rajendra Mullick also opened a Zoo next to the palace, called the Marble Palace Zoo, which largely serves as an aviary. 

Raja Rajendra Mullick, an affluent Bengali merchant built the Marble palace with a zeal for collecting art works. Presently it is occupied by Raja Rajendra Mullick Bahadur, who was the adopted by Nilmoni Mullick. He also constructed a temple for Lord Jagannath in the palace property and made it accessible only to close relatives.

Marble Palace is situated near to the Tagore’s residence in Kolkata. It houses an art gallery which belongs to yesteryears Chorbagan’s Mallick family. This also showcases the art collection by any individual and is built with Italian marbles. It reckons to be one of the legacy buildings of Kolkata. The Palace has an interior courtyard, a throne room, and art objects of Europe, oil paintings by Van Goyen , Reynolds, Rembrandt, Rubens and besides many others. Its prized collection includes a varied assortment of Chinese and Japanese porcelain. The Marble Palace has established its rank in the archives of history in spite of the gigantic existence of the Museum of Indian.

The Marble Palace, one of Kolkata’s (Calcutta) odder landmarks, was constructed in 1835 by a wealthy merchant and art enthusiast by the name of Raja Rajendra Mullick. Made from more than 90 varieties of marble, the palatial mansion draws inspiration from nearly every cultural influence imaginable.

The Romanesque structure houses a collection of Buddhist, Catholic and Hindu religious relics as well as Ming Dynasty vases, Egyptian statues and works of art from more than 90 different countries, all lit by Venetian chandeliers. Authentic Rubens and Renoir pieces are said to adorn the walls. The neighboring Marble Palace Zoo is more of an aviary with several varieties of impressively feathered species with a few monkeys and deer as well.

The Marble Palace remains privately owned by Mullick’s relatives, and while admission is free, you’ll need to secure a permit at least 24 hours in advance. Be prepared to pay what you saved in admission on tips for everyone from the staff tour guides to the bathroom attendants.  The Marble Palace (Kolkata), located at 46,Muktaram Babu Street, Kolkata 700007, is a palatial mansion located in North Kolkata, India, which was built by Raja Rajendra Mullick in 1835 and contains many beautiful Western sculptures, pieces of Victorian furniture, and paintings by European and Indian artists. Large chandeliers, clocks, and busts of kings and queens decorate the hallways of the palace. It is famous for marble wall & floors, antiques, paintings by Rubens, curios, marble statues,floor to ceiling mirrors and for its collection of rare birds. Marble Palace is still resided in. Entrance is restricted and permission must be obtained from the government tourist office.

Located next to the palace is the Marble Palace Zoo,which was the first zoo opened in India, also by Raja Rajendra Mullick. It now primarily serves as an aviary, including peacocks, toucans, storks, and cranes.