The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
At first
sight, it is
just one among the many grand houses lining the road. It is an unassuming
structure, which gives no hint of the treasures displayed within. From intricately
carved teak wood altars, to silver plated crosses, remnants of an old fort, to recovered
bits of ancient churches – the Indo Portuguese Museum at Fort Kochi has all
these and more!
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| Can you see that structure where the car is parked? That is the museum. Doesn't look like one, does it? |
The
Museum is located
within the compound of the Bishop’s House – at one time, the residence of the
Governor of the Fort, and in later times, the seat of the Bishop of Cochin Diocese.
The house is thus an apt place for a museum like this, having such a strong
connection to the Portuguese history of Fort Kochi. In fact, Portuguese Bishops
held the seat here, well past independence, till 1950, when the see was handed
over to the Indian clergy. It was the second Indian Bishop, Bishop Joseph
Kureethara, who laid the foundation for the setting up of this museum, in
collaboration with the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation of Lisbon, Portugal.
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| The Bishop's House. I would have loved to go in, but it is off limits for visitors |
The
museum is built
over the remains of the original fort which gave the town its name. The ruins aren’t
very impressive, though I appreciated that they have been preserved. Very little
remains of the fort today, and this is one of the few portions which is
accessible to the public. I believe that there are more, and better preserved
ruins in other parts of Fort Kochi, but they are part of heritage resorts, and
thus inaccessible to most visitors. This is, therefore, the closest we could
get to the original fort.
 |
| Remnants of the fort. Not too impressive, are they? |
Not many
people seem to
visit this museum, hidden as it is, among the other houses, but the sole caretaker
is an enthusiastic man, juggling the roles of ticket vendor, guide, and guard,
with ease! He took us around happily, along with another foreign couple who
turned up on cycles just after us, showing off the treasures with pride. Photography
isn’t allowed inside the museum, but when we asked, our guide brought out some
postcards of the artifacts, hidden deep within a cupboard. To our greatest
surprise, he said there wasn’t any fixed price, but that we could pay whatever
we liked! Obviously, the cards don’t see the light of the day very often!
 |
| Postcards |
Interesting
as these artifacts were, showing us just how elaborate and rich the Cochin Diocese was, since
ancient times, we were most fascinated by this – an ancient lock, typical of
Kerala. It is said that this lock, seen on many doors in this region symbolized
their welcoming attitude to all religions. Hidden within the intricate details
are symbols of various religions. How many can you see?
I
could only spot
4, though there are probably a few more hidden away… here are the ones I do
know… firstly, the shape is like that of the Om, the sacred symbol of Hinduism.
Then, it also displays a trident, which could either also symbolize Hinduism,
or the local Devi worship, which is so prevalent in the area. Islam is
represented by the crescent moon and Christianity by the cross just over it.
Zoroastrianism also finds its place, in the decorative elements above the rod,
which seem to depict fire. We were told that there is also a Jewish symbol
somewhere here, but I was unable to find it. If you can, please do leave a
comment below!
Also located
within this complex is the Vasco Da Gama Research Institute, which fosters
research into the Portuguese history of the city, as well as conducts
Portuguese language courses. I came across an interesting article talking of
the courses held here, and the efforts being made to revive the Portuguese
culture in the city. You can read it here.
Information:
- Location: The Indo Portuguese Museum is located within the grounds of Bishop House, which is a well known landmark in the area. It is within walking distance of the beach as well as other tourist places.
- Timings: 9:00 A.M. to 1:00 P.M.; 2:00 to 6:00 P.M.
- Closed on Mondays and Public Holidays
- My suggestions:
- Ask the caretaker for the Postcards. The quality is not too great, but they surely need the encouragement to print more and better ones!
- The wooded grounds of the museum are home to various birds. We were told that a pair of peacocks were frequent visitors, though we didn’t see them, as it was raining all the time.
Related Posts:
- Part 1: First Impressions
- Part 2: Chinese Fishing Nets
- Part 4: St. Francis Church
- Part 5: Santa Cruz Cathedral Basilica
- Part 6: Mattanchery Palace
- Part 7: Jew Town and Synagogue
- Part 8 : A Boat Ride
- Part 9: 3 Cafés, Three experiences
- Part 10: Maritime Museum
Nice one Anu! I absolutely love the lock...gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Sid!! Its truly something, right? and apparently is seen all over Kerala. surprising that i never saw it before!
DeleteWe visit so many places where history plays a great role and this museum is a perfect example for this.Thanks for sharing it,it was really informative.
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome, Avneet! Glad you liked it!
DeleteInteresting pictures..
ReplyDeleteThank you, Megha!
DeleteThe Jewish symbols are depicted as 4 candles that run along the top of the trident. I visited Bishops house a few months ago and enjoyed seeing the Manichitrathazhu lock as I believe its called.
ReplyDelete