The historic Senate House of Chennai
Kanchipuram Athi Varadar comes out of the water once in 40 years. Similarly, some heritage structures in Chennai occasionally open their doors to the public. The Senate House is one such colonial building that was made accessible to the public for a brief period this year, thanks to an exhibition. Are you from Chennai, but you have never seen this place? Then, read on...
The imposing Senate House building was built for five years between 1874 CE and 1879 CE. The great British architect Robert Chisholm, who pioneered the Indo-Saracenic architecture style in Madras, was the architect for this beautiful building.
The Senate House is located on the campus of Madras University. The architecture is an amalgamation of Hindu temple architecture, Islamic architecture, and Gothic revival styles.
The structure has two floors. There are six porches. There are two porches on the northern and southern sides. The eastern and western sides have two porches each. Each porch has three arch openings, with the central arch being bigger in size. Every two adjacent porches have three arches in-between. The first floor has similar arrangements of arch openings in all four directions.
There are four tall towers atop the roof. The style of the tower is called Byzantine dome style. Few smaller domes are found at the corners.
The large doorways lead to an imposing central hall with domed interiors. Six arched entrances on each side connect the hall to the corridors. The decorated stained glass windows above these entrances are impressive and extensive. Each corridor stands on six massive pillars. The top portion of the pillars has miniature bas-relief icons of various Hindu deities and other symbols.
A beautiful wooden staircase leads us to the first floor. The small balconies with circular pillars look elegant. The roof of the building is made of brick and lime mortar.
The imposing Senate House building was built for five years between 1874 CE and 1879 CE. The great British architect Robert Chisholm, who pioneered the Indo-Saracenic architecture style in Madras, was the architect for this beautiful building.
The Senate House is located on the campus of Madras University. The architecture is an amalgamation of Hindu temple architecture, Islamic architecture, and Gothic revival styles.
The structure has two floors. There are six porches. There are two porches on the northern and southern sides. The eastern and western sides have two porches each. Each porch has three arch openings, with the central arch being bigger in size. Every two adjacent porches have three arches in-between. The first floor has similar arrangements of arch openings in all four directions.
There are four tall towers atop the roof. The style of the tower is called Byzantine dome style. Few smaller domes are found at the corners.
The large doorways lead to an imposing central hall with domed interiors. Six arched entrances on each side connect the hall to the corridors. The decorated stained glass windows above these entrances are impressive and extensive. Each corridor stands on six massive pillars. The top portion of the pillars has miniature bas-relief icons of various Hindu deities and other symbols.
A beautiful wooden staircase leads us to the first floor. The small balconies with circular pillars look elegant. The roof of the building is made of brick and lime mortar.
The Senate House is a historic building that has seen many functions till 1965. In 1937, the hall was used as the meeting place for the first elected Madras Legislative. It was the venue for Madras Music Academy for the first few years. Only recently, it has lost its importance.
Happy travelling.
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Super blog with nice information
ReplyDeleteTake you for the virtual tour through an iconic building.
ReplyDeleteExcellent sir! Haven't observed the Senate House so closely. Someday when these lockdowns come to an end must go and see those sculptures and paintings for myself.
ReplyDelete