National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy

Title : Terracotta Temple Brick

Accession No : 56/4/456(6)

This is a terracotta temple brick from Bankura, West Bengal. The brick depicts a female devotee sitting inside a temple shrine with her hands folded.

Artistic"Clay art or potter's art is practiced in India by the potter 'kumhar' community. This community is traditionally called Prajapati, the creator, which is named after the Hindu God Brahma-the creator of the Universe. It is one of the earliest and most useful crafts of India. This craft has been continuing since pre-historic times. The figurines are made in parts and assembled together. Plaster of Paris moulds are used to cast different body parts when the figurines are made in larger quantities. A metal wire is used for support and reinforcement in the clay models. They are fired in a kiln and painted with poster or water colours. The craft still has a market in rural melas and craft emporia."

DescriptionThis is a terracotta temple brick from Bankura, West Bengal. The brick depicts a female devotee sitting inside a temple shrine with her hands folded.
Inscription/Markings No
Reference"Jain, Jyotindra and Aarti Aggarwala. National Handicrafts and Handlooms Museum, New Delhi. Ahmedabad: Mapin Publishing Pvt. Ltd., 1989. Chattopadhaya, Kamaladevi. Handicrafts of India. New Delhi: Indian Council for Cultural Research, 1975. Shah, Haku. Form and Many Forms of Mother Clay: Contemporary Indian Pottery and Terracotta. New Delhi: Crafts Museum, 1985"
KeywordVishnupur, Temple, Brick, Terracotta, Decorative, Devotee, Worship