A 20 ft octagonal log of wood, 300 kilos of copper, a brass inscription and at least six layers of gold foil completed by brushing glass beads.... Shrabasti Mallik traces what it took to restore the gold finial of Humayun's Tomb
Humayun’s Tomb, the first of the magnificent mausoleums built by the Mughals, has been symbolic of Mughal creativity and assimilation of architectural elements found in Indian building pre-dating the Mughals. The dome is crowned by a 18 feet tall finial with a core of a 22 feet tree-log on which are fixed 11 vessels of pure copper crowned by a brass inscription — the whole finished by the Mughals with layers of pure gold.
Though stone finials, no more than three to five feet in height, can be seen on tombs built during the Sultanate period in Delhi, there is no precedent — before the building of Humayun’s Tomb — for a finial of this grandeur on any structure, anywhere in the world. Just as the chattris or canopies on the roof of Humayun’s Tomb are inspired from Rajput architecture, similarly the copper-gold finial erected here, seem to have been inspired by temple architecture and built precisely to fit the dome profile. later, the Taj Mahal used a similar copper finial.
On May 30, 2014, during a sandstorm of unprecedented wind velocity exceeding 150 km/hour the wooden core of the finial snapped at the point where it rose above the dome, causing the 300 kilos of copper vessels to come crashing on the roof, 70 feet below.
In an effort to preserve authenticity of the World Heritage Site and in strict adherence to UNESCO guidelines for preservation, the Aga Khan Trust for Culture approached Titan Company limited for funding support in providing the required gold as well as technical support towards restoration of the finial.
Scientific analysis revealed the 99.42 per cent purity of the copper sheets used by the Mughals, in eight inch strips, were embedded into one another using toothed joinery. Copper of such purity is not even commercially available today — 450 years since it was used at Humayun’s Tomb.
The restored finial comprises a 22-feet-tall octagonal log of wood, 300 kilos of copper, a brass inscription and at least six layers of gold foil gilding, completed by brushing glass beads.
The company commissioned manufacturing of copper sheets of required 99.4 per cent purity, as impurities in the copper would result in the deterioration or peeling away of the final gold layers. On the availability of copper in required purity and thickness, a traditional workshop in the Shahjahanabad, Delhi area was employed by AKTC team to prepare the 11 copper vessels required — matching exactly in profile and weight as the original.
The traditional gilding process required mercury to be first applied to the clean copper vessels following which gold foil, manually beaten down from gold strips, was applied. Heating the vessels led to the evaporation of mercury, leaving the gold layer bonded to the copper. Systematic and scientific cleaning of the vessels, as well as applying heat in advance of the mercury, were introduced to the traditional craft process.
Sharing his thoughts, Bhaskar Bhat, MD of the company said, “With the expertise offered by our jewellery manufacturing capabilities and our compassion towards preserving the cultural heritage of our nation, we are delighted to have been a part of this important conservation project. We are proud to partner with the Aga Khan Trust for Culture and also with the Archaeological Survey of India in restoring the gold finial of the Humayun’s Tomb. We have taken up this project with a focus of not only restoring the monument to its authentic form but also on enhancing the quality of the structure to ensure its survival for generations to come.”