The proposal to shift the Didarganj Yakshini statue from Patna Museum to the newly constructed Bihar Museum has turned the mood at its address of 87 years sombre.

The statue is undoubtedly one of the most prized possessions at the museum.

The female figurine of the chauri-bearer, discovered on October 18, 1917, will enter its centenary year on Tuesday. The statue has been the major attraction for tourists and visitors to the museum. Though the Patna Museum authorities have not received any official letter from the art, culture and youths affairs department till date about shifting the statue but the staff and officials are perplexed.

An official in Patna Museum, preferring anonymity, said: "The day we heard about Yakshini's proposed shift from Patna Museum, we were shocked. We boast of two ancient artefacts - the Buddha relics and Yakshini - which very few museums across the country possess. The shift will be a major loss to Patna Museum, as thousands of visitors visit the museum daily only to see the 3rd Century BC Mauryan statue," he said.

Echoing the official, Dinesh Prasad, a visitor at the museum, said: "Yakshini and Patna Museum are co-related. Both the statue and building are heritage for Bihar. The shift is not a wise decision, as it will be just like old wine in a new bottle. If the government is so interested in preserving ancient statues and artefacts, there are many statues lying unattended in temples and open fields in rural Bihar. The government should assemble all such structures and place them in the new museum."

Quizzed on the statue shift, art, culture and youth affairs minister Shiv Chandra Ram said: "The government wants to make Bihar Museum a world-class museum. As Yakshini is a world-class artefact, its ideal location will be Bihar Museum."

Explaining the historical and architectural importance of Yakshini, Shankar Suman, the assistant curator-cum-guide lecturer in Patna Museum, said: "According to records, on October 18, 1917, a serpent was seen entering a hole on the riverside (the Ganga). The residents dug up the hole to find a life-size female statue carved out in stone."

The statue was brought to Patna Museum (it was housed in a room in Patna High Court at that time) on December 17, 1917. But when the Patna Museum came up in 1929 during the tenure of Governor (Bihar-Orissa) Sir Hugh Lansdowne Stephenson, it was shifted to Patna Museum.

"The 3rd Century BC statue is one of the rare artefacts dating back to the Mauryan empire. Built from chunar sandstone, its shine is intact after more than 2,300 years. Experts have researched to find out the reason behind its glaze but they too have failed," added Suman.