Mercenaries, Merchants & Medicine-Men by Paul Abraham
Sarmaya Founder Paul Abraham’s talk traces the routes taken by some fascinating travellers to the Subcontinent between the 16th and 19th centuries.
rare books
Collecting art & artefacts
Sarmaya Founder Paul Abraham and Brand Custodian Pavitra Rajaram acquire objects to continually enrich our museum’s collection. In this Guide, they share some great advice with young collectors on how to engage meaningfully with the art and culture of India
reimagine II
Inside the studios and minds of seven contemporary artists who have interpreted and re-imagined objects from our collection to tell us stories in their unique styles
Anatomy Of A Flower – Exquisite 19th-Century Botanicals by Indian Artists
A rare book from our collection, ‘Indian Botany’ by Dr Robert Wight combines scientific survey with outstanding illustrations by artists we will never know. Our interview with Dr Henry Noltie throws new light on them
The Sari Story – How A Simple Garment Travelled Around India & Across the Ages
The sari is draped in more than 100 ways across the country, evolving with time and influenced heavily by geography, culture and even popular entertainment
‘Costume of Hindostan’ – A Rare Glimpse of the Common Indian from 18th-Century Bengal
An exquisite object from our rare books collection that shows how the British once sought to understand a whole subcontinent by paying attention to what its citizens wore
Works of Fiction: The Uprising of 1857 from the British point of view
We review rare books from our collection that document the Uprising of 1857 from a decidedly British point of view
Shalihotra Samhita by Ancient India’s Dr Dolittle
A 3rd Century BCE manuscript from our rare books collection holds the key to raising happy horses and elephants
Spell Binding
A delightful peek into book-binding technology from the 16th and 17th centuries that let you open one book in up to six different ways! The featured book is from the National Library of Sweden and it’s a stunner in more ways than one. Find a close-up below and for more pics, click here