This is a post about my visit to the museum housing the scientific collection of C. V. Raman, the Nobel laureate in Physics, after whom the famous Raman effect is named. I got to see the museum in the summer of 2023 during a visit to the Raman Research Institute (RRI) in Bangalore, India and somehow did not get down to writing about it for almost a year.
There were several interesting aspects to this visit.
First: The museum is a special place, in the sense that it is not actually generally open for admittance. It opens to the public only on special days like National Science Day (Feb 28) in India. So you have to specifically request a viewing, and the request is more likely to be accepted if it goes through a faculty member at RRI (in this case my host).
When I was visiting, the keeper of the museum had retired. But since he lived nearby, he was asked if he would be available to come over and open the galleries and give us a tour. Thankfully, he did. In fact he turned out to be an interesting person with very detailed and interesting information about the exhibits.
Second: I was joined by some unexpected companions: a departmental colleague at RIT who happened to be visiting his family in Bangalore; and a professor from France who eventually invited me to visit his lab in Paris (I went, a few months later).
Third: Raman was a great collector of gems and crystals: I have never seen so much bling in a scientist's stash. Raman was interested in their optical properties, and the display cases included rather expensive diamonds, amethysts, opals and rubies, among others.
I was also shown some crystals which Raman acquired from an iron ore factory which was shutting down some distance away. Apparently these crystals form only when the furnaces are cooled below a certain temperature, and when he heard the factory was closing, Raman promptly presented himself to collect the specimens. The museum also contains many items that he collected in his tours worldwide and which he received as gifts from other countries.
Fourth: Raman was also interested in acoustics, and the collection houses several musical instruments (I remember seeing string and percussion instruments in the museum, which he wrote physics papers on). This included a tabla, which the keeper, amazingly, allowed me to play to my heart's content (and to the amusement of my companions).
Fifth: Raman was an obstinate (persistent?) character. The day he retired from the Indian Institute of Science, he moved to the RRI campus, which he had built as his 'scientific retirement' - a place where he could continue to perform research till basically his death.
However, when he first moved in, there was no electricity in the Institute. The power company demanded a bribe, which Raman refused to pay. Instead, he built himself a device with a mirror that could track the sun throughout the day and reflect its light into his office, so he could work! The device was on display in the museum. (Eventually, I was told, electricity was provided).
Sixth: The climax of the tour occurred in a room where the lights were switched off and UV lamps were turned on. A number of stones, which contain chemicals that fluoresce as a result of absorbing the UV light, lighted up in the dark and made for a colorful display (more bling).
Postscript
Overall, the impression the museum gives is that Raman was a scientist with intense curiosity and persistence (also idiosyncratic - there's a sign there that he used which says 'The Institute is not open to visitors. Please do not disturb us.') - inspiring!
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