The collection at this unique museum was put together by Mir Yusaf Ali Khan (Salar Jung III), the Prime Minister of the Nizam. It contains about 43,000 art exhibits and 50,000 books. Some of these have been collected from all over the world. The sculptures, wood carvings, miniature paintings armor, and weaponry, precious stones and jewels displayed here leave visitors spellbound. Two of the best pieces at the museum are the "Veiled Rebecca", a delicated marble statue of a woman seen through a veil and "Marguerite and Mephistopheles", a double figure wood carving. The ivory chairs and turbans of Tippu Sultan and the swords.

Reputed to be the world's largest one-man collection, the famous Salar Jung Museum houses around 35,000 antiques and art objects collected by Salar Jung III, a former Prime-Minister of, the Nizam. The museum's 36 halls display an intriguing array of treasures, the finest crystals and porcelain, an assemblage of statues that includes the veiled Rebecca & Margarita-Mephistopheles, miniature paintings, illuminated, manuscripts, fabulous jewelled weapons, including the Empress Noorjahan's dagger and the Nawab's own diamond-encrusted sword, priceless collections of jade, ivory and bronzes and a fascinating variety of clocks. The most important historical exhibits are the turban and ivory chairs of Tipu Sultan of Mysore.