The
Da Vinci Code enjoyed international success in the early 2000s. Presented as a
work of fiction, the story told by Dan Brown goes beyond the imagination. The
secrets revealed during the investigation by the main characters Robert Langdon
and Sophie Neveu make readers feel that they could be actual events. There are many factual and fictional things
mentioned in the novel of Louvre museum.
The Louvre is the world's largest art museum and a
historic monument in Paris, France and is
located on the Right Bank of the
Seine.
A
museum is an institution that cares for
(conserves) a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural,
historical, or scientific importance. The
Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology on Beaumont Street, Oxford, England, is
the world's first University museum. Its first building was erected in
1678–1683 to house the cabinet of curiosities that Elias Ashmole gave to the
University of Oxford in 1677. The museum
reopened in 2009 after a major redevelopment. In Nov 2011, new galleries
focusing on Egypt and Nubia were unveiled. In May 2016, the museum opened new
galleries of 19th-century art. The main
museum contains huge collections of archaeological specimens and fine art. It
has one of the best collections of Pre-Raphaelite paintings, majolica pottery,
and English silver. The archaeology department includes the bequest of Arthur
Evans and so has an excellent collection of Greek and Minoan pottery. The
department also has an extensive collection of antiquities from Ancient Egypt
and the Sudan, and the museum hosts the Griffith Institute for the advancement
of Egyptology.
In our
Srivaishnava sampradhayam, among the Azhwars – Thirumangai Mannan holds a
special place. In every brahmothsavam we
have ‘Kaliyan vaibhavam’ whence the Lord
holds the reins of the golden horse –
Kaliyan who was a local chieftain comes chasing on his ‘adalma’. Neelan, (Kaliyan) – who was later known by various other names as Parakalan, Kavilokha Divakaran, Nalukkavipperumal, AliNadan,
Arrattamukki, Adayar seeyam, Kongumalar KuzhaliyarVel, Korra venthan and more was a local
chieftain’ who used to feed thousands everyday.
He had vowed to feed thousands of persons each day and also needed money
to build temples.
Our
Azhwar was born in Thirukkuraiyalur
(near thiruvAli-thirunagari) and was named as neelan (an attribute of his
complexion) Thirumangai mannan’s
disciples were -Neermael nadappan,
Nizhalil odhunguvan, Thaloodhuvan,
Tholavazhakkan. Not finding
enough resources he and his disciples
had to resort to robbery and Sriman Narayanan in his various Leelas
chose to play with him, by getting robbed, making him realize his folly and
turning him to his trusted devotee.
Kaliyan understanding the significance became Thirumangai Azhwaar and
rendered Periya Thirumozhi; in Naalayira
Divyaprabandham, Thirumangai mannan has contributed 1137 hymns.
Neelan, ordained to listen to the
Ashtakshra mantra, becomes Thirumangai Azhwar.
In the photo of Azhwar on the small
horse, one can see him armed with sword and shield. This
divine act is recalled and as stated in the ‘sthala puranam of Thiruvallikkeni’
– Perumal and those accompanying Him lose their valuables. The entire act is read out in a sanctimonious
rite called ‘pattolai’ (literally the verses in palm leaves covered with silk). After
the enactment of this vaibhavam, Kaliyan
learns ‘Ashtakshara mantra’ and in the purappadu the opening of Periya
Thirumozhi‘"வாடினேன் வாடி வருந்தினேன்"
~ is rendered.
above 2 photos @ thiruvallikkeni divaydesam
While we
feel happy in having darshan of Alwar, Acaryas and Emperuman at various
divyadesams and abhimana sthalams, the idols are meant to be kept in holy
places (infact the places become holy because they are there) and worshipped –
not elsewhere. Sadly, some idols have
been stolen, have found their way out of the country and are kept as
show-pieces in museums abroad and in private places. Tragic is the tale as in many cases, even the
theft was not properly recorded and culprits too roam scot-free. Govt has taken over temples, but are not
maintaining them properly – stating security concerns, sometimes, idols of a
particular temple are taken away and kept in some other temple / other
places - the heart of bakthas should
bleed !! ~ now read this sad newsitem that appeared in The Guardian UK and many
other mainstream media including Indian Express.
The Indian
government has asked the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford to return a 15th-century
bronze idol that was apparently stolen from a temple in the 1960s. The Indian
high commission in London said a formal request for restitution of the statue
of Saint Tirumankai Alvar was made last Friday. The move comes after the
Ashmolean informed the high commission last December of new research that
questioned the provenance of the sculpture, which was bought by the museum from
Sotheby’s auction house in London in 1967.
An independent
scholar found a 1957 photograph in the French Institute of Pondichéry, that
appeared to depict the same idol in the temple of Sri Soundarrajaperumal, in a
village near Kumbakonam in the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu. That sculpture
was stolen in the early 1960s. The
sculpture, which is almost one metre tall, depicts Tirumangai Alvar, one of the
Tamil poet-saints of south India, holding a sword and shield. The venerated
saint, who lived thousands of years ago, was a chieftain, a military commander,
and a bandit before converting to the Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism.
Rahul Nangare, the
first secretary of the Indian high commission in London, said it had received a
report from police in Tamil Nadu that “unambiguously shows that the original
idol has been stolen and replaced with a fake one, and that the stolen idol is
the same one that is presently with the Ashmolean. “Therefore, we have conveyed
our formal request to them for restitution of the idol to India. The idol wing
is now further investigating the matter about the original theft and subsequent
smuggling out of the idol.”
Nagare thanked the
Ashmolean for taking proactive steps to alert the high commission and expressed
hope that “other museums would follow the example in dealing with suspected
stolen pieces of our cultural heritage”. He said the Ashmolean was carrying out
further due diligence on the provenance of the sculpture, with a museum
official scheduled to visit India shortly. A spokeswoman for the Ashmolean said
there had been no claim against the sculpture. “The museum acquired the statue
in good faith. According to the Sotheby’s catalogue the bronze was sold from
the collection of Dr JR Belmont (1886-1981),” she said. Based in Basel, from
the 1950s Belmont had amassed one of the
finest collections of Indian sculptures. “We currently have no indication of how the
bronze entered his collection and we are continuing to investigate with the
support of the Indian high commission.” Other Indian bronzes once in the
Belmont collection have fetched more than £490,000 at auction.
Deaccessioning the
sculpture would require the approval of the art and archeology museum’s board
and the vice-chancellor of Oxford University. The museum says that it was
alerted to the origins of the ancient statue by an independent researcher in
November last year, following which it alerted the Indian High Commission. "Research
in the photo archives of the IFP-EFEO (Institut Francais de Pondichery and the
Ecole francaise d'Extreme-Orient) appears to show the same bronze in the temple
of Shri Soundarrajaperumal Kovil in Tamil Nadu in 1957," a statement from
the Ashmolean Museum said on Monday.
Indian High Commissioner
in the UK Ruchi Ghanashyam acknowledged the "proactive" move of the
museum soon after and the matter was forwarded to the Indian authorities for
follow up, with a formal request for the restitution of the idol sent to the
museum earlier this month. "After we provided them the police report along
with the formal request for restitution, Ashmolean have informed that they are
now carrying out further due diligence with an official from Ashmolean also
scheduled to visit India shortly.
A spokesman for the
Indian High Commission says that on Friday it received a police report from
Tamil Nadu that “unambiguously shows that the original idol has been stolen and
replaced with a fake one, and that the stolen idol is the same one that is
presently with the Ashmolean”. The next step is for the Ashmolean to work with
the the scholar who first alerted them and the Indian authorities to establish
a more accurate provenance. Abhay Kumar
Singh, Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Idol Wing CID, stated here
that , “The idol has been missing from
the Soundararajaperumal temple in Sundaraperumal kovil village near Kumbakonam
since the 1960s. We traced the bronze idol to the Ashmolean Museum, London,
after verifying the documentation of Hindu idols by the French Institute of
Pondicherry (IFP). The picture of the Thirumangai Azhvar idol, which was taken
in 1957, matches with the idol kept in the museum.”
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar
25th Feb
2020.
https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2020/feb/21/india-asks-oxford-museum-return-stolen-bronze-statue-ashmolean
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