Aranmula Kannadi, meaning the Aranmula mirror, is a handmade, metal-

alloy An alloy is a mixture of chemical elements of which at least one is a metal. Unlike chemical compounds with metallic bases, an alloy will retain all the properties of a metal in the resulting material, such as electrical conductivity, ductility, ...

first surface mirror A first-surface mirror or front-surface mirror (also commonly abbreviated FS mirror or FSM) is a mirror with the reflective surface being above a backing, as opposed to the conventional, second-surface mirror with the reflective surface behind a ...

made in

Aranmula Aranmula is a temple town in the state of Kerala, India. It is known as the cultural capital of Pathanamthitta district, located at a distance of around 116 km from Trivandrum, the capital of Kerala, it is situated on the banks of the ...

, a small town in

Pathanamthitta Pathanamthitta (), is a municipality situated in the Central Travancore region in the state of Kerala, India, spread over an area of 23.50 km2. It is the administrative capital of Pathanamthitta district. The town has a population of 37 ...

, today's

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

Description

Unlike normal "silvered" glass mirrors, it is a metal-alloy mirror or

or front surface reflection mirror, which eliminates secondary reflections and aberrations typical of back surface mirrors. They are produced by one extended family in Aranmula. The exact metals used in the alloy are maintained as family secrets; metallurgists suggest that the alloy is a mix of

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

and

tin Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal. Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...

, so a type of

speculum metal Speculum metal is a mixture of around two-thirds copper and one-third tin, making a white brittle alloy that can be polished to make a highly reflective surface. It was used historically to make different kinds of mirrors from personal grooming ...

. It is polished for several days to achieve the mirror's reflective surface. The polishing is done using an abrasive paste made by mixing rice bran with oil extracted from seeds of ''maroṭṭi (

Hydnocarpus pentandrus ''Hydnocarpus pentandrus'' is a medium-sized tree in the family Achariaceae. This dioecious tree grows up to 10m height, in moist deciduous forests of Western Ghats in India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country ...

)''.

Cultural significance

The origins of the are linked to

Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple The Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple is a Hindu temple located near Aranmula, a village in Pathanamthitta District, Kerala, South India. It is dedicated to the God Krishna, an avatar of Vishnu, who is worshipped as Parthasarathy (Arjuna's chariotee ...

. According to legend, centuries ago the royal chief brought eight families of temple artisans and craftsmen from

Tirunelveli Tirunelveli (, ta, திருநெல்வேலி, translit=Tirunelveli) also known as Nellai ( ta, நெல்லை, translit=Nellai) and historically (during British rule) as Tinnevelly, is a major city in the Indian state of Tami ...

district in

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

to Aranmula to create the mirrors in the temple. These unique mirrors are the result of then Kerala's rich cultural and

metallurgical Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the sc ...

traditions. They have great historical and cultural value, and are thought to bring good luck. The mirrors are considered one of the eight auspicious items or "" used in the entry of a bride at a wedding venue. Kerala's chief minister

Pinarayi Vijayan Pinarayi Vijayan (; born 24 May 1945) is an Indian Communist politician who is the current Chief Minister of Kerala, serving since 25 May 2016. A member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), he is the longest-serving sec ...

presented an Aranmula mirror to

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

Hamad of

Bahrain Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...

during a visit there in 2017. The

British Museum The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docum ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

has an Aranmula mirror 45 centimeters tall in its collection. The mirrors received a

geographical indication A geographical indication (GI) is a name or sign used on products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g., a town, region, or country). The use of a geographical indication, as an indication of the product's source, ...

(GI) tag in 2004-05.

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

Aranmulakannadi.org
* Mirrors Culture of Pathanamthitta district Geographical indications in Kerala Indian metalwork Aranmula {{alloy-stub

Description

Cultural significance

See also

References

Bibliography

External links