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Title:
Volume 60 - Issue 1
Date:
2008
Table of contents:
- p. 12-25 [Also in Sindh: Past Glory, Present Nostalgia edited by Pratapaditya Pal; Vol. 60 No. 1; September 2008, ISBN: 978-81-85026-88-6, pp. 106-119]: Bilgrami, Noorjehan, The Living Textile Traditions of Sindh | Situated at the crossroads of diverse cultural influences, Sindh’s physical terrain has fostered a diversity of crafts since the birth of the Indus civilization. Subsequently trade networks were established with China and Iran, resulting in the cross fertilization of textile technologies and cultural influences. The continuity of these techniques and a timeless repertoire of timeless motifs connect the traditions of past and present. Profiled here are the major traditions and their makers: ajrak, quilts, embroidery, rugs, and the motifs and colours of Thar.
- p. 26-39 [Also in Sindh: Past Glory, Present Nostalgia edited by Pratapaditya Pal; Vol. 60 No. 1; September 2008, ISBN: 978-81-85026-88-6, pp. 120-133]: Raza, Rosemary, Picturing Sindh: British Representations | The early visual records of Sindh were mainly by military officers, reflecting the strategic interests that largely determined Britain’s engagement in the area from the 1830s. From the early 1850s, Sindh came under civilian administration, and military artists were replaced by their civilian colleagues. The main focus of development was economic and social, areas of achievement which were also recorded by expanding new technologies. These, including photography, facilitated the reproduction of illustrations in a wide variety of forms, including books, weeklies, and postcards. British involvement also created interest in Sindh’s history and culture, much of which could be illustrated visually, including its arts and crafts and historical monuments. Although many of the architectural remains of the British era are now crumbling, the pictorial representation of the British presence, the developing infrastructure of Sindh, and the British fascination with many aspects of its past and present live on as a witness to their colonial presence.
- p. 40-51 [Also in Sindh: Past Glory, Present Nostalgia edited by Pratapaditya Pal; Vol. 60 No. 1; September 2008, ISBN: 978-81-85026-88-6, pp. 134-145]: Bhavnani, Nandita, Kalachi, Kurrachee, Karachi: Biography of a Metropolis | Gateway to Sindh, this premier port city became the capital of the province after the British conquest. The white town was planned, clean, spacious, the black town crowded and messy. In the 1850s with Bartle Frere as commissioner, modernity came to Sindh with infrastructure and improvements. The American Civil War and opening of the Suez Canal brought prosperity and the Hindu population amplified their mastery over education, business and the bureaucracy. The Parsi contribution too was significant. Other immigrant communities too contributed to its fast growth. Included are reminiscences of people who grew up there. After Partition and till 1962 Karachi was the capital of Pakistan. The surge of refugees transformed Karachi, affecting its infrastructure and demographics, and laid the foundation for decades of discontent. In the 1970s and ‘80s bombings and kidnappings came to be identified with it. While the Hindus are only a fraction of their earlier numbers, the small but influential Parsi presence continues. Most of its citizens are outsiders – Mohajirs and Punjabis, strangers to the city’s history. Attempts are now being made to preserve its colonial and indigenous architecture.
- p. 52-61: Bokhari, Afshan, The “Light” of the Timuria: Jahan Ara Begum’s Patronage, Piety, and Poetry in 17th-century Mughal India | This study examines the Jami Masjid, Agra and the mosque of the Sufi saint Mullah Shah Badakshi in Srinagar as articulations of Jahan Ara, daughter of Emperor Shah Jahan. It explores the duality of the princess’s character as exemplified in the design of the mosques and in her biographical Sufi treatise as functions of her imperial duties and her spiritual affinity with the Sufi Qadiriyah order. It pays attention to issues of identity, gender, and religion.
- p. 62-69: Sadhu, Anirban, “Magni Mogolis Imperium”: An Early Manuscript Map of India | There has been a surge in collecting objects related to Indian antiquity. However, most of this interest is focused on paintings, and Indian maps and prints have still not got their due attention. Old hand engraved and hand painted maps of India (manuscript maps) produced till the mid-1700s exist in very few numbers and are extremely rare to find. Apart from being a testimony to humankind’s endeavour to understand the world, these maps are beautiful artistic and historical treasures as well. This article describes two such manuscript maps – the “Magni Mogolis Imperium” and the “Nouvelle Carte du Royaume de Bengale”.