Maintenance Strategy:Angel of Victory Atop the Victoria Memorial Hall, Calcutta

'Old order changeth yielding place to new'. 'Old is gold'. Are these two proverbs contradictory Let one answer the way one likes.

Materials and practices of yesterdays are not same as that of to-days and certainly not of tomorrows. And sentiments persist for time immemorial. Science advances, technology leaps, but sentiments remain still. Joys and sorrows, virtues and vices, victories and defeats are preserved through monuments, books, sculptures and scriptures. The civilization-past, present and future- exists through the archeological preserves and the like. Such a piece of fine art is the Victoria Memorial Hall (Fig 1) located at the heart of the metropolis of Calcutta, which was believed to be constructed by the British Raj with the futile attempt to make another Tajmahal in scenic beauty and glamour. The Tajmahal, however, remained in the hearts of thousands as ever with all its candid beauties and glamour. Question automatically rises, "Is the Victoria Memorial Hall a total failure ?" Certainly not, it is also a good piece of construction in its own way amidst the lush greenery and a number of well maintained tanks, at the centre of picturesque gardens.