TAXILA: With the help of a Japanese aid agency, authorities have started a project to upgrade conservation and storage facilities at the Taxila Museum – house to a priceless collection of relics dating back to the Buddhist era – at a cost of 48 million yen.

Department of Archaeology Deputy Director Mohammad Iqbal Manj informed that the project was being executed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which would fund the project expected to be completed by June 2024.

The museum, established in 1928, has 6,000 antiquities on display and over 30,000 relics in storage, yet it was deprived of “crucial equipment for humidity control and proper storage facilities”.

“As of now, only approximately 30 per cent of the remains in the Taxila valley are excavated, and the work is still under progress,” he added that more relics were expected to arrive at the reserve collection store of the museum.

Official says over a dozen dehumidifiers to be installed to stop decay of artefacts

According to the official, humidity and improper storage arrangements were accelerating the decay of precious artefacts – a serious concern for the preservation of cultural heritage. He said that most of the items were on display with “outdated lighting systems and very limited text description” while the building did not have dehumidifiers to control the possible decay of antiquities. Similarly, modern audio and video systems were also missing and the museum also needed up-gradation in the existing security and firefighting apparatus.

Mr Manj was of the view that after the completion of the project, the flow of tourists and researchers would increase considerably. He informed that as many as 22 pieces of equipment would be provided to the museum authorities for better preservation and conservation, including 13 dehumidifiers, 600 humidity control adsorbent sets, CCTV systems, and 600 LED lights among other apparatus. “It is expected that after completion of this project, the museum would contribute to keeping the cultural heritage of Pakistan intact and making the knowledge about ancient history accessible to researchers, scholars and students,” he added.

Ali Gohar, an archaeological engineer at the Directorate General of Archaeology, informed that the Punjab government launched a project “Up-gradation of Public Facilities and Illumination of Important Historical Monuments and Sites in Punjab” at an estimated cost of Rs200 million.

One of the important components of this project is the construction of the auditorium and documentation centre at Taxila Museum. He added that a digital documentation centre would be used for documentation and creating virtual reality projects. He was of the view that the equipment provided by the Japanese authorities would be utilised for the better preservation and conservation of artefacts as well as the provision of better facilities for research work.

Published in Dawn, June 13th, 2023