A Swedish Parliamentary delegations visit Lahore Museum

Lahore: A 20-member parliamentary and trade delegation of Sweden headed by the Speaker Riksdag, the Swedish Parliament,  Per Westerberg currently on a goodwill tour to Pakistan, today visited Lahore Museum and witnessed the exhibition of ancient art work, replica of the Harrapan pottery and artifacts having worldwide historic importance.

The delegation also included the Swedish Ambassador in Pakistan Tomas Rosandar and the wife of Swedish Speaker Parliament. Minister for Education, Tourism & Archaeology Punjab Rana Mashhood Ahmed Khan and Provincial Secretary Information & Culture Momin Agha warmly received the Swedish delegation on its arrival at Lahore Museum.

The delegation witnessed the artifacts placed in the pre-historic and Indus Gallery, Hindu, Buddhist & Jain Gallery and the collection displayed there which takes the visitors as far back as the pre and proto-historic cultures of Pakistan.

The delegation was astonished to witness the proto-historic and Chalcolithic objects of 3^rd millennium B.C. and later which include coins, terra-cotta animals like Humped bull, figurines of high turbaned mother goddess, bowls with lids, goblets and beakers, storage jars, bronze lances and arrow heads. Besides, bangles and necklaces of segmented beads like those found in Egypt.

The Swedish Speaker Parliament acknowledged the fact that the artifacts and intaglio steatite seals with figures of animals along with pictographic-cum-ideographic script are of great attraction for whole the world as treasure of historic heritage of mankind.

The delegation was informed that Lahore Museum is one of the top ten museums in the world which was inaugurated in 1894 by Prince Albert Victor, the grandson of Queen Victoria.

Provincial Minister Archaeology Rana Mashhood Ahmed Khan took the delegation to the Islamic Arts Gallery of Lahore Museum to witness the beautiful model of Badshahi Masjid. The head of the delegation termed this model a fascinating master piece to watch.

The Minister informed the delegation that Pakistan is the custodian of five thousand years ancient civilization. We realize our historic richness and want to open the doors of our historic heritage places to people at large and particularly to the anthropologists from all over the world.

Responding to the Swedish Riksdag Speaker’s remarks about highlighting the commonalities in different ancient civilization, the Minister said that all pre-historic civilizations were devastated because of clash between various civilizations.

Rana Mashhood Ahmed Khan reiterated the universal truth that mankind should learn the lesson from this wreckage in the past once for all that various civilizations can live peacefully only through making it possible that tolerance be exerted in spite of having difference of opinion among each other.