Fakir Khana is a private house turned into a museum in Lahore, Pakistan. It is situated along the Hakimaan Bazaar, near the Bhati Gate. Owned by the Fakir family, it is the largest privately-owned museum in South Asia and contains over 20,000 objects, mostly works of art and artifacts from the 18th to 20th centuries, including a small collection of Gandharan artifacts.
The Fakir family settled in Lahore around 1730, and established a publishing house. Three of the family’s ancestors served as emissaries to Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
The family amassed a collection of objects, including many bestowed to the family by Maharaja Ranjit Singh. The family opened their house as a museum open to the public in 1901 and is still open. To preserve the collection and the site, Fakir Khana receives some government funds for maintenance.
The collection also contains 10,000 manuscripts, 180 displayed miniature paintings, Sikh era textiles, statues, pottery, and carved ivory pieces. The collection also includes a 12 by a 6-inch painting of Nawab Mumtaz Ali, that was painted with a single hair and required 15 years to be completed.
The house in which the fakir khana museum Lahore is located offers insight into the lifestyles of upper-class Lahori families during the Sikh and British eras. It was originally owned by Raja Todar Mal, finance minister to the Mughal Emperor Akbar.
