Under the latest and popular online series of Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya titled ‘object of the Week’, The ‘Kharha', a big iron cauldron made of iron plates by the local blacksmiths under the patronage of the Sainj ruler of Shimla Himachal Pradesh was displayed on Monday in the audience as the 5th Exhibit of the July, 2020 through official website, Facebook, Instagram and twitter page of the IGRMS.
In this regard, Praveen Kumar Mishra, Director, IGRMS, said that the Sangrahalaya (National Museum of Mankind) has taken up many new initiatives to face the challenges posed by this pandemic. It is coming up with a new series entitled ‘Object of the Week’ to showcase its collection from all over India. Initially, this series will focus on the masterpieces from its collection which are considered as unique for their contribution to the cultural history of a particular ethnic group or area. These masterpieces belong to the “AA” & “A” category. There are 64 objects in these categories.
Karaha is a large cauldron made of iron plates by the local blacksmiths under the patronage of the Sainj ruler. Sainj was once a principality under the jurisdiction of a great Sainj King of Himachal Pradesh. The vessel is made out of a multiple hand-made heavy gauge iron sheets joined together and fashioned into the form of a huge bowl.
It consists of four rings interlocked and fixed around the rim for the purpose of carrying it. The lid of the cauldron is made up of a thick and circular iron sheet pivoted into two equal halves and can be folded.
The vessel was meant for the food preparation in large quantity during the rule of the King. Food was prepared for the people who work in the palace and for those who rendered services to the king. This iron vessel represents about 90-year-old tradition with magnificent craftsmanship both in design and shape and bears historical importance. It reveals the royal service rendered to the public during the reign of the Sainj ruler.
Visitors can see this object from home through the Official site (https://igrms.com/wordpress/?page_id=606) andFacebook site (https://www.facebook.com/onlineIGRMS/), Instagram and twitter page of the IGRMS.