The Antiquities of Orissa v1.c10.277

Language: English

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**Camara :** The *cāmara* or fly-flapper reckons next in importance to the umbrella among royal insignia. It is frequently referred to in Sanskrit works, and the *Yuktimestampaturu* of Bhoja Rāja dwells on it at great length. According to it, there were two classes of *cāmaras* in use in former times, one "mountain-born", and the other "sea-born". "The former were made of the hair of cattle common on the Meru, the Himālaya, the Vindhya, the Kailāsa, the Malaya, the Udaya, the Asta and the Gandhamādana mountains. The *cāmara* of the Meru mountain was of a deep yellow colour; that of the Himālaya, white; that of the Vindhya, white and dense; that from Kailāsa, black and white mixed; that from Malaya, white and yellow mixed; that from Udaya, blood-red; that from Asta, blue and white shades mixed; and that from Gandhamādana, sometimes black, and sometimes pale yellow".¹²⁹ Of these varieties, those which had long, light bright and dense hair, were reckoned the best, and those which had short, heavy, discoloured and dull hair were condemned as bad. The first set of qualities ensured to the owner of the *cāmaras* possessing them, long life, [ 109 ] great valour, fame and enduring prosperity, while the second set brought on shortness of life, disease, sorrow and death.¹³⁰ The sea-born *cāmaras* are said to come from the seven Paurāṇic seas.

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The animals which yield them are believed to dwell in those seas, and marine animals bite the bushy part off from their tails and cast them on the shore, where fortunate people collect them. Each sea has its own peculiar kind of *cāmara*, and the author describes them in detail. He adds that the most characteristic quality of the mountain-born *cāmara*, is the ease with which it burns when thrown on the fire, and the peculiar *mis mis* sound which it produces when burning. The sea-born *cāmara* does not easily take fire, but when it does burn, it emits profuse, dense smoke, and produces a crackling sound like *caṭ caṭ*.¹³¹ It is evident that by the mountain-born *cāmara* the author refers to the tail hair of the Yak, Gour, Gayal and other bovine animals which continue even to this day to yield *cāmaras* of various kinds; but what he means by sea-born *cāmaras*, I cannot make out; and yet from the details of their colour, length, density and sound produced when burning, it is obvious that he alludes to some imported articles which he had seen. Of these several kinds of *cāmaras* the *Bṛhat Saṃhitā* notices only the yak *caury*, which, it says, is sometimes yellow, sometimes white, and sometimes black, the best being that which is white, glistening, soft, dense, beautiful, and enclosing only a few small tail bones. Its handle may vary in length from a span to a cubit;

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it should be made of some choice wood, mounted with gold, silver, and jewels.¹³² Of the handles appropriate for the various kinds of *cāmaras*, the articles of which they should be made,—gold, silver, and the like;—the mountings they should have,—jewellery of various kinds;—their thickness and length with reference to the respective ranks of the persons for whom they are to be made, the author also gives elaborate descriptions; but they are not sufficiently interesting to be worth translating. The Smṛtis also describe various kinds of *cāmaras*; and speak of the merit of presenting them to Brāhmaṇs on particular occasions, but I shall forbear to quote from them, as it is impossible to identify in sculpture the different varieties mentioned by them. The article itself is frequently met with in sculpture, and represented as a mass of flowing hair mounted on a handle more or less ornamented. The woodcut in the margin (No. 50) shows the typical form, but the mass of hair of which it is formed is not always made of a uniform thickness. In some specimens, the hair is short, but thick-set and very bushy; in others it is long, flowing and light. The pellicles of the tail-feathers of peacocks, and the crested tops of those feathers were also used in making *cāmaras*, but I have not seen them delineated in sculpture, nor have I noticed any mention of horse-hair as a material for *cāmaras*.