Asiatic Society turns 242, displays manuscript paintings
Times of India | 16 January 2025
123 Kolkata: The Asiatic Society, established on Jan 15, 1784, by William Jones in Calcutta and home to over 50,000 ancient manuscripts, unveiled an exhibition featuring vibrant paintings embedded in these priceless documents. The showcase aims to ignite interest among the youth in India's ancient knowledge systems.
Lt Col Anant Sinha, administrator of Asiatic Society, said, "We hope this exhibition inspires youngsters to explore these treasures. Our repository is exceptionally rich, and it's high time they take note. Who knows, someone among them might become a future James Prinsep or William Jones!"
For instance, the Kutial script on palm leaves has miniature pictures of Buddha delivering vacana (Buddha's words of wisdom). It is perhaps the most ancient picture of Buddha portrayed in the Eastern Indian style while the Satyanarayankatha is a manuscript on Purana with some amazing line drawings detailing the architecture of that time, the attire of people, and the regular habits of people. The society's most prized possession is the Burmese Ramaya, an abridged ‘Ramayana' in vibrant colours and photographs.
The ground floor room of the ancient building, the oldest one in the vicinity, is now being repurposed for the exhibition, put up by young employees of the institution.
"The more you look at these miniatures, the more you discover. There are layers and often codes hidden in the pictures. So reading these pictures is like solving a mystery," said a manuscript expert of the society.
But not all manuscripts are on palm leaves or cloth. Some are on tin plates. There are manuscript paintings often painted with gold and lapis lazuli. Kammava Pahdaw, for instance, is a Burmese script on tin plates with inscriptions with gold lines.