In these circumstances, the deposed maharaja commissioned the building of a large mansion, with several public and private courtyards, for the use of his family and retainers at a site which was a short distance from the grounds of his old palace.

It was thus built with brick and mortar, reflecting many architectural embellishments, often made of valuable woods and precious stones.

After the commission was dissolved by the rendition of Mysore in 1881, the kingdom was restored to the next in line to the throne, Yuvaraja Chamarajendra Wadiyar X.

In 1896, during the wedding celebrations of Princess Jayalakshmi Devi, the eldest sister of the ruling maharaja Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV, the old palace caught fire and was very seriously damaged.

In 1955, by which time the Kingdom of Mysore had been subsumed into the Republic of India, the art gallery was enlarged with gifts of many precious articles by the maharaja.

[7] Most of these artefacts are paintings, prominent among which are those by Raja Ravi Varma, some of which demonstrate scenes from the Hindu epics such as the Ramayana and the Mahabharatha.

Other exhibits here include weapons of war, musical instruments, sculptures, brassware, antique coins, and currencies.

Syrendri (which had a hole in the canvas), Victory of Meganath and Malabar Lady were some of Ravi Varma's paintings that were restored.

[11] Unscientific stretching of the canvas on which the paintings were drawn was one of the major problems noticed including unprotected exposure to dust, heat, and light.