Under the museum series ‘Exhibit of the Month’ of Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya, a traditional object is displayed in the appearance for a whole month.
The exhibit for the month of October - ‘Taan’ is on display in the indoor exhibition building – Veethi Sankul. The 'exhibit of the month' has been formally inaugurated by Director, IGRMS, Prof Sarit Kumar Chaudhuri and Joint Director Arun Kumar Shrivastava. This has been compiled by Rajesh Gautam (Museum Assistant). Weaving is a traditional art in the hilly terrains of Uttarakhand.
‘Taan' – a traditional handloom is prevalent among the rural areas of the State since ancient days. ‘Taan’ was especially used for weaving ‘‘Dan’’thick woollen carpet. It is a simple and practical tool which is manufactured by using indigenous technology. The carpet produced from this loom is strongly built and very attractive. The etymology of the word ‘Taan’ comes from the stretched position of woollen strings in the loom. ‘Taan’ is extensively spread in the two major divisions of the state- Garhwal and Kumaon.
The local or village carpenter constructs the loom using pine wood, bamboo sticks as raw materials and tools such as chisel, hammer, adze, saw and smoothing plane etc. Sheep wool is the chief raw material for making ‘Dan’. Procured raw wool is processed into strings by using spindle and the strings. The strings are rolled into balls and cylindrical bundles which are locally known as Dhind.