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A circular open space covering an area of 12,081 square yards (10,101 m²) at the heart of Mumbai's Fort area. Construction of the garden started in 1921 and was completed after 12 years. After 1942 the garden lost its glory and was used as a dumping area of coconut shells. In 1872 the park was given a new lease of life by the then governor Lord Elphinstone, Trees were planted and walkways were laid out. The garden came to be known as Bombay Greens and the circle surrounding it came to be known as Elphinstone Circle. After independence, the park was renamed in honour of Benjamin Horniman, editor of The Bombay Chronicle. An ornamental fountain was placed in the centre, but it was replaced by a modern art deco iron pipes design. Today the park is surrounded by an office complex, including some offices of premium banks. The office of the Asiatic Society of Mumbai and the St. Thomas Cathedral are in the circle surrounding the park.
The Horniman Circle Gardens is a large park in South Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, which encompasses an area of 1.01 hectares. It is situated in the Fort district of Mumbai, and is surrounded by office complexes housing the country's premier banks. Designed to be a large open space with grand buildings in the middle of the walled city, the area had been known as Bombay Green in the 18th century, later Elphinstone Circle. Following India's independence in 1947, the area was renamed in honour of Benjamin Horniman, editor of The Bombay Chronicle newspaper, who supported Indian independence.
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The Asiatic Society of Mumbai is a learned society in the field of Asian studies. The library of the Society has over 100,000 books out of which 15,000 are classified as rare and valuable. It also has priceless artefacts and over 3,000 ancient manuscripts in Persian, Sanskrit and Prakrit, mostly on paper but some on palm leaf. The numismatic collection of 11,829 coins includes a gold coin of Kumaragupta I, a rare gold mohur of Akbar and coins issued by Shivaji. Its map collection comprises 1300 maps. The Town Hall (colloquially called "Tondal" in the 19th century) that houses the Asiatic Society of Mumbai was not built in 1804, the year in which the Literary Society of Bombay was formed. Though Sir James Mackintosh mooted the proposal for a grand edifice, it was not completed until 1830 (year to be confirmed with tablet on the entrance) after many fits and starts, when the Bombay Government agreed to make up for the shortfall in funds in return for office space. The after-effects of this compromise can still be seen in the unseemly crowds gathered at the Stamp Office and other government departments in the Town Hall. It is now classified as a heritage structure. Heavily influenced by Greek and Roman architecture, it has a portico with eight Doric columns. A flight of 30 steps lead up to the town hall and a wrought iron divided Regency staircase leads to the vestibule. In 1830 Sir John Malcolm, governor of Bombay stated: "It is the most magnificent structure that taste and munificence combined have as yet erected in India."
Completed in 1718, it is the first Anglican church in Mumbai, to improve the "moral standards" of the growing British settlement. One of the gates in the Fort which the East India Company had built to protect their settlement was the entrance to the St. Thomas Church. It was called Churchgate. That is why the whole area towards the West of the Church is called “Churchgate” even today. The church was consecrated a cathedral in July 1837. The tower and the clock at the western end were added in 1838. About 25 years later a major renovation scheme was launched to enlarge the chancel. This was completed by 1865. The cathedral marks colonial Bombay's point zero, the exact centre of the city. Today a plaque at the entrance of the cathedral narrates the history of zero point.
मुद्रा संग्रहालय Mudrā Saṅgrahālay; मैद्रिक संग्रहालय Maudrik Saṅgrahālay
One of the museums in India that covers the evolution of money in the country, from the earliest barter system and the use of cowries to paper money, coins, stock markets and modern-day electronic transactions.
मुंबई वाडा Mumbaī Vāḍā
One of the oldest defensive structures in Mumbai. The current building is built by the British on the site of a manor built by a Portuguese nobleman Garcia de Orta. It once served as the Governor's House of the Bombay Presidency, which was later moved to Parel and eventually Malabar Point. It houses the offices of the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command, and as with many military structures in use, entry is restricted to military personnel only.
दलाल पथ Dalāl Path
The historic financial heart of Mumbai, and home to the iconic Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). Like New York's Wall Street, Dalal Street is a metonym for India's big business, stock market and the entire financial industry based in Mumbai. A narrow alley running between Mumbai Samachar Marg and Nagindas Master Rd, Dalal Street is named after the Marathi word for broker, as local brokers were trading informally under banyan trees near Horniman Circle in the 1850s. In 1875, they formed the Native Share and Stock Brokers’ Association, which is now the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).
Flora Fountain is an ornamental fountain dedicated to the Roman Goddess Flora. The walls of the Bombay Fort were demolished in 1862 and the gate leading to the church was replaced by the Flora Fountain in 1864. It was built at a cost of ₹64,000 or £9,000. The Flora Fountain is surrounded by several Victorian-era buildings. In 1960, the square was renamed "Hutatma Chowk" (Martyr's Square) in memory of the people who laid their lives during the birth of the state of Maharashtra. Next to the Flora Fountain stands a stone statue in memory of the martyrs. The statue consists of a pair of martyrs holding a torch.