horn craft of west bengal.pdf
TRANSCRIPT
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HORN CRAFT OF WEST BENGAL
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HORN CRAFT OF WEST BENGAL
GUIDED BY
MR. JYOTINDRA JAINMS. ANUSHREE KUMAR
DOCUMENTATED BY
ABHISHEK DEANANDITA RAOMANSI GUPTA
RISHIKA SALECHASRIVIDYA DEVADAS
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF CRAFTS & DESIGN
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Text Srividya Devadas Photographs RIshika Salecha and Srividya Devadas
All rights reserved under international copyright conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any other information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher.
Designed by Mansi gupta Edited by Anandita Rao
Crafts have evolved immensely in India. Horn craft is a craft pursued in the states of West Bengal, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh.
Our journey represents the sum of the special knowledge which we gained from a small family. A family with of a man, woman, two daughters and a grandmother, sustaining life with minimal resources yet filled with an utmost welcoming attitude.
There were a number of unknown and unnoticed things and actions such as that the products had a major influence by nature. This craft is a classic example of how the waste of one industry provides raw material for another industry. The horn waste is used as a fertiliser in the fields.
The simplicity with which the products were formed and the basic logical thought processes were eye openers .It made the simple act of looking an endless pleasure.
This craft documentation captures the story of an animal by-product turning into an aesthetic object.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
We profusely thank Srimati & Sri Panchanan Das &his family for giving us their precious time and
sharing all their knowledge on horn craft and making us feel at home with their love and affection.
We also would like to thank Mrs. Somita Chandra, Director at Madhusudan Nagar Craft Centre,
Midnapore, for her constant guidance towards documenting the craft throughout our stay and to
those people who made our trip sustainable; our family and friends.
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CONTENTS
The state of West Bengal
The craft destination- Narayanchowk
About IICD
Introduction to Horn
Artisan- Mr. Panchanan Das
Craft Cluster- New Chanchala Wood and Horn Industry
Raw Material
Processes- Spoon, Comb, Sculpture
Varieties of Horn
Difference Between Cow Horn and Buffalo Horn
Tools
Buying and Selling Strategy
Our Experience
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ABOUT IICD
IICD is a unique institution that is synergizing
traditional knowledge and skills with contemporary
needs to evolve methodologies that are relevant to
modern India.
It is an innovative, first of its kind Institute set up by
the Government of Rajasthan, to develop human
resources for the craft sector.
The central idea of the Institute is to evolve a
sustained programme of growth and development
for both crafts sector and craftsmen in an integrated
manner, i.e. to generate requisite knowledge, to
upgrade relevant skills
*as downloaded from googleimages.com
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THE STATE OF WEST BENGAL
The state of west Bengal has had a very important role in Indian history. Politically as
the seat of the British raj this had tumultuous effect on Indian psyche. Bengal was birth
place to various mystics and social reformers, crafts, poets & intellects.
With children being brought up reciting the poems of Rabindranath Tagore, one can
see the influence of art in their lives. Festivals such as durga puja ,kali puja ,saraswati
puja and many more are celebrated with great enthusiasm and zest in this state .the
bengalis have a close relation with hilsa fish a definite delicacy smoked variety & sweet
mouthing like sandesh ,rasgullah,mishit dahi etc .
Bengal renaissance had wide spread social consequences throughout India - abolition
of sati, legalisation of Hindu widow remarriage act, the start of English education,
gradual raising of marriageable age for girls are all milestones in the countrys growth
as a civilised nation. With breathe taking architecture monuments like Victoria memorial,
Howrah Bridge, shanti niketan are known all over the world.
*as downloaded from googleimages.com
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THE CRAFT DESTINATION- NARAYANCHOWK
Situated by the river Kosai, the village of Narayanchowk is home to the horn craft in
West Bengal. With no boundary walls in the neighbourhood and small ponds beside
every house, this place is worth getting engaged with.
The village, well connected with dusty kachcha roads, is 82 kilometre away from the
capital city of Kolkata.
When looked around, vast expanses of rice plantation, vegetable and flower fields fall
into view. The kachcha roads are followed by bamboo bushes on each side of the path
forming canopies for every time one would lift the eyes.
The village still retains the essence of mud houses sustained by vertical bamboo
framework. Not exceeding the number of storeys by three, the slant roofs are made with
terracatta tiles, to discontinue the flow of water inside the house during rainy season. It
is hard to show the back to this wonderful place on earth.
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INTRODUCTION TO HORN
Horn is an external part of animals like cows, buffaloes,goats ,rhinoceros ,deers. Horns
are growths that protrude from the skulls of some animals. They are made up of two
components, first is bone and the second is keratin.
The bone is the centre, or core, of the horn and is fused to the bone of the skull. The
bone core is covered by a resilient sheath (protective covering) made of keratin. Horns
are the permanent part of the animal, which means the horns an animal is born with are
the same horns it has its entire life.
Horns do not branch out, but instead end only in one point on each side of the animals
head. Depending on the species of the animals, horns might be found on both males
and females, or males only. Horns are used for determination of age in various species
depending on the number of rings observed on the horn.
In horn craft animals like cows and buffaloes are dehorned. Buffalo horns are also
said to be found fallen in forests which are also put to use. Domesticated animals are
dehorned so as to not harm themselves or others.
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ARTISAN- MR PANCHANAN DAS
Living in Narayanchowk in a two storey
house with his wife two daughters and mother,
Mr.Panchanan Das has carried down the
tradition of making horn products from his
forefathers .Having passed 12th standard and
being able to read English, his aspirations still
were to create his products in horn.
A quarter portion of the ground floor of his
abode is his workshop having two other men
working for him, he learned techniques of
creating products in horn from his father having
the income of Rs. 150 to 200 per day and
monthly production of Rs.4000.
Previously he had more labour to work with
but eventually they departed in search of
government jobs. He has skill to produce
products but not enough labour due to which
he cannot participate in big fairs. His products
are sold through NGOs, private middle men
and the government.
A problem of dying availability of raw material
is being experienced due to export .Also the
quality has said to degrade as people learn little
and start their own practice. Mr.Panchanan
Das is client oriented and also does various
other explorations of his own. He takes up
orders of designers. His products are very
much influenced by nature.
He has experience of working with jig saw,
turning lathe even though he doesnt have one
in his workshop. He is associated with the West
Bengal Industrial Training Center under the
DIC . Mr.Panchanan Das is a very hardworking
person and is always willing to work with new
technologies and designs.
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CRAFT CLUSTER- NEW CHANCHALA WOOD AND HORN INDUSTRY
Another cluster we visited a little far away from
Mr.Panchanan Dass house was of Mr.Tarun
Singha- New Chanchala Horn and Wood
Industry. This cluster comprised of families
working together including the women of the
families in the cluster. It is very market oriented
with a business minded approach.
They are not completely loyal to the material of
horn and hence make products with mixture of
wood, seashell, coconut shell and horn. This
cluster has the availability of machines like
grinders, jig-saw, circular cutting saw, turning
lathe, generator for electricity thus making their
work faster and easier.
They make products like key chains, spoons,
small bird sculptures, coasters, knives, bowls,
combs, etc. But not all these products would
be completely made of horn; they are usually
in combination with wood or coconut shells.
Inlay of sea shells &wood in horn is also found.
In ten days of Delhi Trade Fair they earn 4-5
lakhs. They have good exposure in the market
and are seen in many big fairs.
A spoon serving of theirs in whole sale would be
Rs.150 & a single piece in fair would be Rs.200.
Small bird sculpture would cost Rs.300-400
.And whistle key chains worth Rs.25. Each
labourer ought to make 35-50 key chains a day.
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RAW MATERIAL
Buffalo horn is said to be sourced from places
like Orissa, Assam,Madras and Bihar . It is also
sold in sialdah and raja bazaar in Kolkata. Horns
have now started to be coloured in blue, black &
red with acid colours available from raja bazaar
in Kolkata. It seems most of the horn products
are made from buffalo horns and less from cow
horns.
It is brought in unit of kilograms varying from the
range of Rs.40/kg to Rs.200/kg rising in quality;
the maximum weight of horn is 3 kg in damp
conditions horn tends to get spoilt.
CHARACTERISTICS OF HORN:
Horn in its form is three dimensional as it
commences from the skull it is broad and with
the growth it narrows to its ends .The broader
portion is hollow ,light whereas the narrow
portion is solid ,heavier and used for expensive
decorative items .
Horn can be bent and carved to a very flexible
shape or form; it is tightly bound with even
grains. It emulates the smell of burnt hair while
heating due to keratin.
Horns are found mainly in shades of grey and
black. Though white horns are available, they
are rare and expensive. Horns exported from
Australia are found in different colours and
textures.
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PROCESSES
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The solid portion of the horn is chopped off.
The horn is then cut into two halves, vertically or horizontally as per requirement..
It is then heated by the naturally available fuel, which is lit by a kerosene lamp. to keep the flame kindled, a manual fan is used.
The heated horn is then pressed according to the required product. The horn is kept in between a wooden die so that it does not get spoilt. If the horn is flattened, the slant edges are chopped off with a saw.
The horn is then dampened to make it soft. Therefore the rainy season acts as a favourable time of the year.
The horn is then filed one stage before drying. This is the basic preparation of the material horn to be made into any product.
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PROCESS OF MAKING A SPOON
The round portion is kept in a wooden block die which is kept under pressure to give it a concave shape.
The handle of the spoon is pressured downwards so as to keep it in the same position of the joint is a straight aligned line.
The flattened horn piece is then marked with a wooden template and then cut with a saw.
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The detailed curvatures of the spoon are given while grinding.
The design is drawn with a marker. Mostly the images resemble the animals around and are inspired with the local environment.
The image is carved out with the grinder. The outline of the form is achived in this process.
A grinder with lesser thickness is used to carve out the finer details aof the image.
The object is then polished with super-X polish to obtain the desired glossy surface.
Often this sort of pattern is carved out with a v-shaped chisel. One tooth is used a pivot while the other revolves to carve the pattern.
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PROCESS OF MAKING A COMB
Looking at the flattened horn pieces, the design of the comb is drawn to minimise wastage. Traditionally, horn craft started with making combs because it is a very good material for the scalp.
The teeth cutting machine is used yo carve out the teed on the comb. It has different sandstones of gauge 16, 18, 22, 24 to carve out teeth of different thickness.
The combs are polished. The teeth are slanted towards the end to facilitate smooth movement of hair.
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PROCESS OF MAKING A SCULPTURE- ELEPHANT
Looking at the available horn piece, the design of the sculpture is drawn.
The broad details are carved out with a saw.
The sculpture is then ground to carve out the contours.
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The holes for the eye are drilled manually.
The eyes are made of plastic fibre. Traditionally the eyes were made of ivory but since it has been banned, nowadays plastic fibre has fallen into use.
The finer details are carved out with the sandstone grinder. The eye is then fitted into the drilled eyehole with the aid of fevi quick.
Horn turnings are filled i the depressions on the surface of the sculpture to be coated with kali powder for colour.
The sculpture is then polished to obtain a shiny surface.
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VARIETIES OF HORN
Animal horn can be identified by its characteristics and the place it belongs to:
Maharashtra The horn found here is long, expensive and has a finished texture.
Madras The horn found here has the best finish and texture. Bihar The horn found here is small, thin and is well finished.
Assam and Orissa The horn found in these regions is cheap and has a very rough.
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BUFFALO HORN
It is flat in shape.
It is rough.
It is longer and straight.
It has more of solid portion.
It is mostly blackish and greyish.
In India, it costs Rs. 100-200/kg.
COW HORN
It is round in shape.
It is smooth.
It is short in size and curved.
It has more of hollow portion.
It is whitish, brownish and greyish.
In India, it costs of Rs.40-120/kg.
If imported, it costs Rs.400-200/kg.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN COW HORN AND BUFFALO HORN
BUFFALO HORNCOW HORN
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TOOLS
Grinding machine
Cotton bob for polishing with super X Red, Black and White
Tongs sandasi
Hand drill, pillar drill
Zig saw
Freight saw
Round tip chisel golansan
V-shaped chisel
Hammer hatudi
Pressing machine
Wooden dyes
Kerosene lamp lampo
Round tip filer (medium size)
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BUYING AND SELLING STARTEGY
The products made by Mr.Panchanan Das and by the cluster of Mr.Tarun Singha are sold
in district fairs. Fairs conducted in Kolkata are also a medium .They even get exposed to all
India government fair.
Pragati maidan trade fair in Delhi known all over the world also is a platform for sales. The
horn products are also exported to countries abroad like Australia, Japan, and America.
Rich merchants also make orders for horn products.
The best period of sales takes place between the months of September and March as many
fairs are organised all over the country.
During the rest of the months, the artisans work for export houses on demand. In fairs, the
products are sold in retail which gives the artisans a good margin of profit.
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From left- Rishika Salecha, Anandita Rao, Srividya devavdas Mrs. Somita chandra, Mansi Gupta and Abhishek De
OUR EXPERIENCE
The three weeks had us realise and learn a lot of things .
With the most compassionate and selfless people we were made to understand the passion
for craft, encouraging us to create products with our heart and soul we learned lessons
every day, each day forming an experience to be remembered.
Thanking all the people through our journey with their good wishes we move forward.