The Central Museum was set up in the Nar-Ratna Mandir in October 1929 A.D. Later, Kartikeyain 1969 it was shifted to a newly constructed building near the Residency Kothi. Presently, the museum has 6 Galleries, namely- the Antiquity Gallery, the Malwa Art Gallery, the Hinglajgarh Art Gallery , the Numismatic Gallery, the Inscription Gallery and the Gallery of Modern Art.

Artifacts from the pre-historic to the modern times have been displayed. Exhibits include fossils, stone-age tools, artifacts from the excavations at Mohanjodaro, excavated material from the chalcolithic sites of Malwa including Kaytha, Awra, Maheshwar- Navdatoli, Dangwada and others, besides the terracotta from Kasravad, Shravasti and Kosambi. UmaThe important images of this museum are - Saraswati (3rd cent. A.D.), Harihar (5th cent. A.D.), Lakuleesh (7th cent. A.D.) and Shiva Vareshwar, Bhuvaneshwari and Veenadhar Shiva (all belonging to the Medieval period). Gold, silver and copper coins - Janapadiya, Ujjaini, Tripuri, Aran and other impressed ones adorn the Numismatic Gallery.

Furthermore, stone inscriptions and copper plates from Western Malwa are exhibited in the Inscription Gallery. Most of these belongs to the Gupta, Paramara and Rajput period.Vareshwar Shiv

The Modern Art Gallery houses artworks on Italian marble, China (clay) and Ivory. A Lota (bowl) made of Ivory is the key attraction.

Stone Sculptures belonging to the Shaiva, Shakta, Vaishnava, Jain and Boddha sects are exhibited in the inner and outer courtyards of the museum.

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• Shaiva Gallery - The Harihar image from Palnagar is unique in that a crown adorns alongside matted hair on Harihar's head. The image of Uma Maheshwar from Nemawar is another important exhibit.
• Antiquities Gallery - It houses stone implements, fossils and pottery. Excavated material of Kaytha culture too is displayed.
• Vaishnava Gallery - Its prominent images are Sheshshayi Vishnu (dilapidated), Yagyavarah, LakshmiNarayan etc. - all of which belong to the Parmara period.
• Golden Jubilee Gallery - commemorating the 50th anniversary of India's independence, this gallery exhibits photos and copies of documents pertaining to the independence movement. The key ones are Tatya Tope's Hukmanama, publicity material of Mahatma Gandhi's hunger strike, documents of the Delhi bombing case etc.
• Jain Gallery - The image of meditating Neminath dating back to 1299 A.D. is the highlight.

Though established in 1902 A.D., the museum could attain formal recognition only in 1938 A.D.

Parvati This museum showpieces an excellent collection of sculptures dating from early Parmara Period to the 19th cent. A.D. The Dhar museum houses the finest specimens of the Parmara sculpture. These could be categorised into – Brahmanical sculpture Mahavaraha, Trivikrama, Shiva, Uma Maheshwar, Gauri, Lakshmi etc. (dating from 11th Cent. A.D. to 13 cent. A.D.) and Ram Sita, , Shesh Shayi Vishnu, Surya etc. (dating from 16th cent. A.D. to 18th cent.A.D.)

The Buddhist and Jain sculptures fall into the other category - Padmapani, Suparshvanath, Neminath etc. (12th - 13th cent. A.D.)

Besides sculptures, the museum also houses inscriptions, coins, seals, medals, prehistoric and historic artifacts (from excavations as also surface findings), paintings, marble images, woodcraft, European art objects and photographs.

Set up in 1997, this museum houses artifacts of national importance collected from in and around the present day Mandsaur.

Uma Maheshwar Many important excavations have been carried out around Mandsaur. These have presented an unbroken record of the civilization from the stone age to the modern times via the antiquities. Hinglajgarh and Dashpur are the prominent sites.

Its main Galleries are :

• Shaiva Gallery - Shiva in various incarnations - Nataraj, Kalyansunder, Sadashiva etc. - is depicted. The images date between the Gupta period and the Parmara era.
• Vaishnava Gallery - Various incarnations of Vishnu and associated subjects are exhibited by its sculptures. Important ones are – Lakshmi Narayana, Narsimha and Garuda. These represent the Gupta, Pratihara and Parmara art.
• Goddesses Gallery - Dating between the Gupta and Parmara periods, these images depict the religious, social and folk themes of the Dashpur region. The prominent ones are - Sheetla, Marichika, Kaumari, Bhoodevi etc.
• Jain Gallery - Images of Yaksha, Yakshni and prominent Teerthankaras including Parshvanath, Neminath and others are displayed.
• Nayika Gallery - This gallery exhibits courtesans in various sensous poses (incl. coitus). They have stylished features and are bejewelled and fulsome. The prominent ones are - Anjana, Vishakanya and Darpana.

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