History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c34.s3: Tools and Implements
History of Technology in India, Vol. I: From Antiquity to c. 1200 A.D. v1.c34.s3
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Tools and Implements
v1.c34.s3.1
The Indian goldsmith, popularly known as Sunār, works entirely with a small set of indigenous tools and implements at his command. All his work is basically manual where he depends entirely on his personal experience, dexterity and judgement. The profession was hereditary, carried from father to son without much external influence. The basic elements of the craft, the traditional forms, motifs and designs of ornaments and the indigenous materials for his work were based on oral instructions and experience. Every village had a family of goldsmiths who would fulfil the basic needs of the rural community. Ofcourse, the urban-based goldsmiths were comparatively more exposed to outside influences in so far as they could copy the forms, motifs and designs of ornaments provided to them as models for fashioning new types of ornaments suiting the taste and traits of their new customers.
v1.c34.s3.2
The urban-based craft of jewellery in India was a team work, wherein a band of skilled workers were involved to complete the work right from purifying the metal to the encrustation of finished gems. The work of refining of the various metals was done by a particular class of goldsmith, known as Nyariya. He did the work of melting old ornaments or purifying gold and silver from alloy. The work of a goldsmith was to prepare the skeleton ornament and send it to the ‘Citera’ for engraving. After completing the patterns on gold, the piece was sent to gariā who would chase patterns and designs. This work was called ‘Gadhat’. The ‘murassakār’ or ‘kundanasāz’ was engaged for studding of the gems. Again, a different set of workers, called ‘mināsāz’ were engaged for enamelling. This type of specialisation in the city brought about much better finish than achieved in villages where a single individual Sunār, used to undertake the entire process single-handedly.
v1.c34.s3.3
The tools and implements of goldsmith are few and simple. The apparatus for heating and melting the metals include a furnace (angethā), crucibles (gharyā) blowpipe (nāl or phuṅkanī) and small curved blowpipes (bangual). After melting the metal the Sunār uses a long narrow trough with a handle known as reza or Pargahani with which he converts the metal into a long bar. For hammering, there is an anvil (nihai) and the hammer (hathaurā). He has various long and small tongs (cimṭā or cimṭi), pincers (samsī or Zambūrī), scissors (katrīs), file (retī) and the chisels (chhenī) to do his job. For drawing wires, the Sunār uses the wire-drawer (Jantra), which is an iron plate perforated with circular holes of different sizes through which the metal bar is drawn out until it is gradually reduced to the thickness of an ordinary wire. A cube (kensulā) of brass or bell metal (kānsa) with circular hollows at the side is used to hammer out the small plates of metal into separate halves of round ornaments, such as the ghungru (small chain bells), which are appended to the chains, bracelets and anklets. There are the dies (thāppā) of various shapes and sizes required for ornaments. The dies are used to bring out the patterns by hammering and heating. The dies are named after ornaments such as the thāppā cūri (a bracelet mould) and thāppā tābiz (amulet mould) and so on.
v1.c34.s3.4
In addition to the above equipment and tools, the Indian goldsmiths used certain other instruments to do the filigree work. The heavy pincers (siari), light pincers (atamgir or pilas) are used for pulling wire. The qualam (pointed iron pen) is required for chasing the patterns. A set of Sālais are used for chiselling and engraving. The Bālanca is a hand brush made of hog’s hair for cleaning. The Meghnala or the mica plates are required for arranging and soldering the wires of filigree work. The Tāra Gola Nali is a wooden cylinder to which the gold and silver wires are wound around. The Hatol is another instrument in the shape of a iron needle which gold and silver wires are wound for making chains.
v1.c34.s3.5
The few indigenous chemicals used by the Sunār in the process of his work are the Suhāgā (borax) as a flux in melting metals and the mango parings (amachul) to clean and brighten the objects. The application of salt is completed with the help of sal ammoniac (nausādar) and alum (phitkarī). Finally, the mānik ret (ruby dust) is rubbed over the ornament to level the surface of the finished articles.