A Ringside View to Kerala as Historical Trade Hub

KOCHI:
Amidst the stellar artworks at Kochi-Muziris Biennale 2016, there is a rare showcase of the story behind Muziris as an ancient seaport in Kerala, with established trade roots with 33 countries around the world dating over 2000 BC.
‘Muziris- A Citadel of Spices’, a collateral exhibition at the ongoing Biennale, attempts to provide a ringside view to the heritage, trade, culture and history of the ancient port and Kerala in general.
The display, divided into 10 subdivided segments beginning from 9th century AD and ending in early 18th century AD, is being organised in collaboration with Kerala Tourism’s Muziris Project Ltd and is set to run till March 29, 2017, when the Biennale ends.
“We see this exhibition as a promotional activity for tourists and locals to gain understanding about the Muziris region and to tell them about the history of Kerala. Over 2,500 years ago Muziris was seen as an urban centre, as an ancient emporium of trade with 33 countries in the world,” says Dr Midhun C Sekhar, of the Muziris Heritage Project, who has curated the showcase with Shine K S.
Situated inside an old warehouse surrounded by the backwaters of the Arabian Sea in Mattancherry area of west Kochi, the exhibition displays a selection of various artefacts dug up during a series of excavations at Pattanam village in North Paravoor.
“Nearly three lakh objects were found in the excavations and these include semi-precious stones, beads, Chera-era copper alloy and lead coins, tobacco pipes, glass and terracotta objects and storage jars, which are displayed here,” says Dr Sekhar.
Historical studies and excavations reveal that Muziris was situated in the present day region of Kodungalloor and Paravoor. The port town was a hub for spice trade with Phoenicians, Persians, Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs and Chinese. As many as 31 countries in Europe, Asia and the Far East, including Afghanistan, Burma, China, Denmark, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mozambique, Netherlands, Oman, Portugal and Spain, had spice trade with ancient Kerala.
Sangam literature describes Roman ships coming to Muziris laden with gold to be exchanged for pepper, referred to as black gold. According to the first century annals of Pliny the Elder and the author of Periplus of the Erythrean Sea, Muziris could be reached in 14 days’ time from the Red Sea ports on the Egyptian coast, depending on the monsoon winds. In the year 1341, Muziris dropped off the map due to flood and earthquake.
There are numerous palaces, temples, churches and synagogues located in the Muziris region and among the them are the Cherraman Juma Masjid, the first structural mosque in the country; the Kottakavu Church, said to be the first church in India; the Paravur Jewish synagogue – the second largest synagogue in India; and a 2000-year-old Shiva temple that features stunning murals.
Details and descriptions of all the important landmarks and monuments are shown in the Biennale exhibition.
The collateral show also displays objects unearthed in the excavations at Kottappuram Fort at Methala village in Thrissur district. The fort built by the Portuguese in 1523 was captured and destroyed by the Dutch in 1663 to be used as an outhouse to guard their trade ships.
“We have unearthed a large number of porcelain items from the area. Chinese embassy officials had visited us and were amazed to find the very same porcelain found in China. This indicates that Kottappuram had strong trade relations with China in the 9th-10th centuries.”
Twenty-three types of Chinese coins, beads and kaolin smoke pipes, brought by the Dutch to Kottappuram, have also been found. “We have many varieties of these smoke pipes made between 1700 and 1780. Dutch were said to be the first to use tobacco pipes and the ones we found here even bear the mark of the manufacturer and the year they were made,” says Dr. Sekhar.
Among the exhibits is a replica of a burial urn that stands encircled within a golden thread.
“In the megalithic age, it was part of the south Indian culture to bury certain possessions of the dead, a practice that stemmed from their belief that there is life after death. We have used a golden thread to represent what the ancient people believed was a golden period of life after death. This is just an artistic representation,” says the project officer.
In the exhibition there are also details of 28 museums of the Muziris Heritage Project. These include the Paliyam palace, a three-storied building built by the Dutch in the 1700s, representing a blend of Kerala-European architecture, and the Paliyam Nalukettu, a typical Malayali traditional house built entirely from wood with a basement storage area.
“We have a hop on hop off boat service for visitors to go to all the museums we have set up. The entire journey spans six hours. We have in and around the area fishing activities, lot of interior backwaters and different types of agriculture such as plantation of coconut, areca and nutmeg, which provides visitors a glimpse of the wonderful culture of Kerala. Our aim is to promote a relaxed
tourism experience combining heritage and backwater cruises,” Dr Shekhar points out.