Theft at the Museum

Atul and Abha were siblings who lived in Rajasthan and went to the same school. Atul was in class 9, and Abha was in class 6.

- Vandana Gupta

Summer vacation was about to start.

Their teacher said, "On May 18, International Museum Day, the school is organising a trip to the city museum. The school will be closed for summer vacation by then, and those interested in visiting the museum must write their names and arrive at the school by 9:30 AM."

"What will we see in the museum?" Abha asked.

"We will see items used by the old kings, their clothing, weapons, and ornaments," the teacher replied.

Abha and Atul enlisted their names to go to the museum.

On May 18, they reached school on time and boarded the school bus for the museum.

Walking through the museum, they saw many interesting objects. The hall that had the king's and queen's royal clothes caught Abha's attention.

She said, "These clothes are so heavy and large! How did they move around wearing these?"

"That orange lehenga is the same colour as my frock! I wore it on my birthday," Abha said to her friend Meetu.

"And the peacock made on it has so many mirrors and beads on it," Meetu added.

In front of them, there were some pictures hanging on a wall, with beautifully decorated elephants facing each other.

"Look at those pictures, Sameer! It seems like the war is happening right in front of us. The weapons of the soldiers are also so different," Atul said to his friend.

They also saw different types of weapons like spears, swords and shields.

The children were amazed to see the ornaments and crowns displayed in the museum. They had never seen such objects before.

After a few days, Abha and Atul got another chance to visit the museum with their aunt. They were leading the way and showing the others around. When Abha saw the queen's lehenga, she was surprised.

"The lehenga was the same colour as my dress that day! How come it is a different shade today?" she wondered.