ME AND MUSEUM

Rushem: a traditional wind instrument Rushem being an important accompaniment of song and dance is played in every festive and ceremonial ocassions among the Kom people and other Kuki-Chin tribal groups of Manipur. It is a wind instrument prepared by master craftsman in a local fashion by using locally available materials like bamboo, dry gourd, bee-wax, powder of conch-shell and feather of Cock. Bitter-gourd ready to harvest for preparing shell  of Rushem Scrapping the upper layer (skin) of the newly harvested gourd Keeping dry-gourd above the hearth for fumigation Process of seasoning bamboo pipes by placing on the hanging platform above the fire place to achieve constant fumigation Segmented and complete view of Rushem November and December is the right time to collect fine props of bamboo to be used as wind pipes of different sizes to be passed inside the body of a gourd from six different holes to produce different tunes in a defined note and scale...

Museum Curators adopt many of the display options to mount objects for curating exhibitions. Items like mannequins, armatures brackets and hanging elements are used for displaying objects in a sensible way to protect the collections from unwanted damages that are liable to  cause mostly by an impractical way of exposition and presentation. Mannequins have been an important item used in the display of textile collections especially the cloths and garments. From the tailoring works of the royal guild to the space of Museum display; from the merchandised shops to the modern fashion industries, Mannequins have been used as an important component for exhibiting garments. The modern Show rooms of garments exhibit different collections of fashionable fabrics to attract the customers. The early forms of Mannequins prepared by wood, wax, papier-mâché and heavy fabric took an arduous level of workmanship to sustain the level of balance keeping the structure to an upright position. These ar...

HAMPAI Large size traditional vessel used by the socially dignified person for giving feast. Longpi village is located 40 Kms away from the Ukhrul district head quarter of Manipur. Majority of the villagers are potters who prepare handmade pots and household earthen ware as an important occupation in addition to their agricultural works. This age old skill of handmade pottery is inherited from their forefathers. Longpi Pot of Manipur has been able to attract large number of people from both the domestic and international arena. It is known not only for its unique shapes and innovated designs but also for the beautiful texture and metal like appearance normally used in various household functions either as kitchen utensils or decorative items for the fancy people. Traditionally, Longpi potter used to prepare Hampai (pot of a dignified man) for the noble family and a man of social status other than the common household utensils. Hampais were used in massive food preparation during s...