House of Jagat Seth Museum

The House of Jagat Seth Museum is a heritage museum housed in the former residence of the Jagat Seth family, renowned bankers and financiers of 18th-century Bengal, located in Mahimapur, Murshidabad, West Bengal. The restored mansion displays coins, textiles, muslin, manuscripts, and personal artifacts reflecting the family's wealth and influence during the Nawabi era. Maintained as a private museum, it offers insight into Murshidabad's mercantile and cultural history.

Visitors can expect a restored historic mansion set in a walled compound with courtyards, galleries and a Jain temple within the premises. Inside, galleries display old coins, currency, muslin and silk textiles, manuscripts, furniture, utensils and personal belongings of the Jagat Seth family. The museum is arranged as period rooms and exhibition halls around a central courtyard, with informational displays about the family's banking history and Murshidabad's Nawabi period. The surroundings are quiet and residential, with guided tours available.

Built in the early 18th century, the house belonged to the Jagat Seth family, who were granted the title 'Jagat Seth' meaning Banker of the World by Mughal Emperor Farrukhsiyar. The family served as bankers and financiers to the Nawabs of Bengal and were among the wealthiest merchants of the period. The mansion preserves remnants of the original residence and contains artifacts from the Nawabi era, reflecting the economic and administrative history of Murshidabad when it was the capital of Bengal.

The site reflects the mercantile and Jain cultural heritage of Murshidabad. The compound includes a Jain temple and displays traditional textiles, coins, manuscripts and crafts that illustrate 18th-century Bengali craftsmanship, trade practices and domestic life of an elite banking family.