Panjurli Mask of Varaha

National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy

Title : Panjurli Mask of Varaha

Accession No : 2003/8316

Panjurli Mask depicting Varaha (wild boar) face with eleven hooded snake as a crown, having an umbrella (Chatra) on the top. The mask is a part of Bhuta cult, having iron chains at the back of the mask.


Provenance

  • StateKarnataka

Condition

  • ConditionGood
  • RemarksRust, poor,
  • Action NoteCNR

Dimensions

  • Measurement (CMS)51.5 x 44 x 54
  • Weight (GRMS)0.00

Significance

  • ReligiousPanjurli is the divine spirit of a male wild boar worshipped as a part of Bhuta Kola. Panjurli in Tulu means a wild boar offspring. In Tululand many wild boars used to destroy cultivated crops of farmers and hence farmers started worshipping the spirits of wild boars.
  • Socio economicThis is Panjurli mask. Panjurli is the divine spirit of a male wild boar worshipped as a part of Bhuta Kola. Panjurli in Tulu means a wild boar offspring. In Tululand many wild boars used to destroy cultivated crops of farmers and hence farmers started worshipping the spirits of wild boars. This was probably later absorbed in Hinduism.

Description

  • DescriptionPanjurli Mask depicting Varaha (wild boar) face with eleven hooded snake as a crown, having an umbrella (Chatra) on the top. The mask is a part of Bhuta cult, having iron chains at the back of the mask.
  • Inscription/Markings Yes
  • Relation1111
  • ReferenceRanjan, Aditi. Handmade in India: Crafts of India. Edited by Aditi Ranjan & M. P. Ranjan. Ahmedabad: Council of Handicraft Development Corporations, 2007.
  • KeywordPanjurli, Cult, Bhuta, Demon, Varaha, Mask, Boar, Snake