The building is situated in Ram Niwas garden outside the city wall opposite New gate and is a fine example of Indo-Saracenic architecture.

Maharaja and Hendley were helped in realisation of their vision by a young engineer, Samuel Swinton Jacob, who was heading the Public Works department.

The museum has a rich collection of artifacts including paintings, jewelry, carpets, ivory, stone, metal sculptures, and works in crystal.

[6] The superb collection is a result of efforts of Hendley who wanted to preserve local skills and crafts and showcase the best craftsmanship of other places for the people of Jaipur.

A repository of 19,000 objects was collected by Hendley, including arms and armour, sculpture, international art from Japan, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Hungary, Germany, Austria etc., pottery, carpets, jewellery, musical instruments, ivory, woodwork, and stone work.

The six-panel set includes the epic narratives of the great gambling scene, abduction of the white horse, Damayanti's Swayamvara, Sacrifice of King Mewardhwaja, and marriage of Bhikya to Chandrahas.

Rudyard Kipling succinctly expressed a scholarly appreciation for the museum in Journal of Indian Art and Industry, dated 5 January 1885, "Every foot of it, from the domes of the roof to the cool green chunam (quicklime) daoes and the carving of the rims of the fountains in the courtyard, was worth studying.