CHAPTER III.
The Wood-Carver.
nPHE strict Hindu loves to regard caste as a rigid and iron-bound institution which has never shifted since its foundation lines were cast
in the Vedas. This theory receives no support from history, and the composition of the "functionary" castes shows conclusively that the caste system of the Hindu is essentially elastic. Necessity knows no law of caste. If society is to exist at all, certain work must be done and
certain industries carried on.
No better instance of a composite functionary caste could be found
than the harhai or carpenter class, which includes Brdhmans and Rdjputs as well as Chamdrs. Traditionally harhais claim descent from Viswa-
karma, son
of
Brahma ;
but
the numerous sub-divisions
show that
the
only real tie is that of a common occupation. Those who follow the
$
Monograph on Wood Carving.
-- occupation of carpentry fall naturally into two classes the village harhai and the city hay^hai. The former is one of the recognised village menials, and in return for certain due's of grain he is bound to work from May to November at the task of keeping the village stock of agricultural implements in good order. For the remaining five months of the year he is at liberty to work how and for whom he pleases. The city carpenter is a free and independent agent. He has advanced from "Status to Contract", and conducts his business and manages his Mr'Jchdna on whatever lines he approves. The craft of wood-carving is not limited to either one of these two classes. The village harhai has no higher ambition than to spend his spare months in the decoration of some rich zamind^r's house, and the city man is ready to execute or superintend any similar work which may be entrusted to him. Of late years^ however, disappointment has too frequently been the lot of the village wood-carver, and the city carpenter has begun to specialize in his industry. Owing to the fast-diminishing demand for " hdriJc ham" universal facility has ceased to be a characteristic of either the city or the village harhai. Had wood-carvers originally formed a separate craft, their' lot would have been ha,rd indeed ! Curiously enough, the very conditions which induced decline also caused wood-carving to become a distinct craft. The men who carve knick-knacks for the European market have cut themselves off from ordinary carpentry, and the younger of them are incapable of repairing a gdri or setting up a plain door. Thus k curious state of things, utterly out of keeping with the old traditions, is gradually coming into existence. The rehlus makers of Pilibhit cannot execute the simplest order for carving, while the carvers of Nagina and Saharanpur have no acquaint- ance with ordinary carpentry (mota Mm). One result of this is the bad joining noticeable in most carving. Lack of finish is no doubt typical of Indian work in general ; but the
Monograph on Wood Carving. wood-carvers are specially notorious for their tendency to " spoil the ship for a ha'p'orth of tar ". It would be difficult to eliminate this defect from the cheap goods which are turned out, piece after piece, to satisfy the globe-trotters' craving for a memento of " India." In work specially executed to order, a little supervision will have a salutary effect. If the purchaser is not prepared to take this trouble, he must not be surprised at finding the most delicate piece of carving disfigured by gaping joints and unstable supports. � In spite of the many evil influences referred to, there are still plenty of good wood-carvers left in these Provinces, though only a small proportion of them find that kind of employment for which they are adapted by taste and ability. Some have surrendered themselves to the baneful influences of the wood-carving hdrhhdnas: others have ceased to exercise their inherited skill and will be found in Railway Workshops or engaged in ordinary -- carpentry : others most fortunate and least numerous of all--are to be found in private European or native employ, where they can work after the manner of their forefathers. The wood-carver, trained to his work from his earliest years, develops a delicacy of touch combined with a sureness and quickness of hand, which renders his handling of the chisel a unique and most attractive spectacle. Carving an involved floreated pattern, with no design before him, he will manipulate his chisel with swift and unerring accuracy and leave his background or ^'tihi zamin'^ as smooth as a well-planed surface. No European workshops can show a phenomenon more striking than the cunning of the Indian wood-carver. It is a gift he has -- acquired by careful training and daily practice, enhanced perhaps by the power of heredity, by the fact that his ancestors have wielded the same tools through countless generations.
10
Monograph on Wood Carving. �
CHAPTER lY.
Design.
nPHE class of design indigenous to these Provinces is, as we have seen, a harmonious blending of the Hindu and Muhammadan styles, in
which the latter predominates. -- The Deputy Commissioner of Fyzabad writes : " The great char-
"acteristic of Indian wood-carving as distinct from other countries*
"carving is that India leaves no space uncovered. There is never an
"effect of a bold ornament or a small design .in relief in the midst of a -- "smooth space, an effect very noticeable in Chinese and Japanese work,
"and occurring ^Iso in English work." " Nor does the domestic Hindu carving use the art so dear to the
"Japanese of a design cut right through. It thus loses the effect of
"light shining through from behind. The characteristic of leaving no
"space uncarved is typically Indian.
" IsJco
Jcyon chhor diya "9
says
the
"employer, so the workman drives in the chisel."
The prevalence of this latter characteristic marks the one great triumph of Hindu extravagance over the severe style natural to Muham-
madan work, The spirit which, in the familiar work of Tanjore, Nepdl, and Burma, finds vent in a tangled mass of monstrous Swamy figures
here bears the stamp of Muhammadan prejudices, and expresses itself
in a rich surface design of arabesques and floreated or geometric patterns.
A This clashing of influences did not lead to chaos.
strict code of
rules was speedily evolved, based on the great masterpieces of Dehli and
Agra. This code is still faithfully adhered to by mistris of the old stamp, who show evident reluctance to execute a design which entails a breach of their " qaida."
This qaida still holds the allegiance of most of the Panjdb Tcdrhhdnas:
its adherents in these Provinces are rapidly diminishing. Wherever
kdrJchdnas devote themselves to supplying the European market, their methods of design become hopelessly confused. Indigenous and foreign patterns are not kept apart. To ensure rapid outturn the same designs
Monograph on Wood Carving.
11
are repeated with monotonous regularity, and faults become accentuated through constant reproduction. The strict code of design naturally has proper system of nomenclature attached to it. This is rapidly becoming a dead language among the new-fashioned mistris. In Sahdranpur each kdrkhdna has its own system. New names have come into use, and old names, are borrowed indiscriminately for new and mongrel patterns. There is, for example, an intricate and intertwined ornamental design, well-known and very commonly used in the Panjdb, known as " Akhari" This name is found to exist in most of the Sahdranpur kdrkhdnas ; but in each case it is applied quite arbitrarily to designs which not only bear no resemblance to the genuine Akhari, but also vary in the different shops. Only in the simple names given to ordinary figures of geometric design does uniformity exist, e.g. chhawans, dasawans, harahwans. Architectural wood-carving, being essentially Indian, was not subjected to the same direct foreign influence as knick-knacks and articles suitable for exportation, and has managed to maintain its purity in spite of decline. The best known and most typical features of architectural carving are the door-frame for chaukat) and the balcony or bukhdrcha. Illustrations are given in the Appendix showing the names by which the essential^ parts are generally known to the mistris of these Provinces. In India the most common form of door is composed of two leaves (jori kiwdr) which do not hang on hinges, but turn on pivots above and below. The junction of the door is covered by a projecting parting bead known as the "hini". Overhead the door is surmounted either by the Hindu trabeated arch or by the Muhammadan mehrdh. Compromise between the two forms is very common, and results in the formation of two spandrels or katefas (shoulder-blades) in the space between the rectangular and the rounded arch.
12
Monograph on Wood Carving.
The mehrdh occurs in a great number of varieties, and the propor-
tions of each are subject to stringent rule. The broadest classification is based on the number of curves (churi)
into which the mehrdh is divided.
This distinction gives rise to the more familiar varieties known as golddr, simargola, saurahi, peshtakh, and nalshatiri.
The manifold floral and geometric designs employed to decorate the
various pillars (situn) into which the door-jambs are sub- divided, all bear distinctive names. Thus a floral pattern which appears to wind up the $itun is known as ainthe-ki-hel. Most common of all is the flat hadrum
or handrum pattern, consisting of symetrically curving lines. Some
A names express their meaning clearly enough.
line of overlapping
scales is known as machhli : ddnaddr is a dotted, geometric pattern : a
design consisting of curling leaves is called motiddr, from the resemblance
A of esidh patta to a closed fist.
situn which is separated into lengths,
like the turned leg of a chair, is known as ^'gola".
The design of the cartouches (dilla) set in the panels, is usually geometric. In most doors of Hindu origin the central panel of the lintel is consecrated to Ganesh. Owing to Muhammadan influence the figures -- of Hindu gods are very rarely worked into the general design as in -- Burmese or Madras work but, when they occur, occupy special niches in the jambs or lintel. The phulmekh or metal studs, which are used with such striking effect in most carved doors, are probably a survival of the spikes used in less peaceful times as a protection against the charge of war-elephants.