Location: Mahimapur area, Murshidabad (near Azimganj)
Hours: 6.30am-6pm daily
Entry is ticketed (with separate rates for Indian and foreign visitors, and free entry for very young children).
Photography: Policies vary; confirm onsite
The Jagat Seth family were wealthy merchants and bankers during the Nawabi period, with wealth estimated at 140 million rupees in the 1750s. British East India Company historian Robert Orme described Jagat Seth as “the greatest banker and money changer known in the world” at that time.
The mansion-turned-museum contains:
- Rare coins from various historical periods
- Pieces of famed Bengal muslin (so fine it could pass through a ring)
- Gold and silver brocade silk sarees
- Period furniture and artefacts
- An underground chamber, and the persistent local tradition of a “secret tunnel”, that keeps the house’s air of conspiracy very much alive
- Display of historical financial documents
The family played a pivotal role in the Battle of Plassey conspiracy alongside Mir Jafar and the British, which ultimately led to their own downfall. Local guides provide detailed historical context.
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