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Conch Shell Carving of West Bengal

Bone, Horn, Shell, Ivory

Conch Shell Carving of West Bengal

Conch shell carving is a craft native to West Bengal. It is one of the most beautiful and exclusive crafts and is very popular in the state.The conch shells are acquired from Kolkata, where they arrive from the beaches of Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka. Conch shells have been used since Vedic times. They are considered propitious by Hindus and Buddhists as sound offerings. As the custom goes, the conch shells are blown by priests to drive away evil spirits, to begin or conclude a religious ceremony or ritual and to celebrate victories and happy occasions.

A conch shell is used in two ways in Bengali tradition. The first way is using the thin whole shells to blow into during religious ceremonies, and the other is carving out the thick conch shells to form bangles worn only by the married women of Bengal. A bride’s first pair of bangles have a rim of red lac according to the Hindu custom.

Ornaments, bangles, and other ritual objects made from conch shells are distinctive and special to West Bengal. The conch shell carving craft is practiced by the Sankhakar community.

The shells are first washed to remove the dirt and debris from the sea. A grinding machine is used to remove the rough outer surface of the shell and the leftover impurities. The shell is washed again but now with hydrochloric acid to obtain a much lighter and whiter colour. Then the filing, engraving, and polishing are done after which the article is complete.

The craftsmen use various kinds of files, hammers, chelai /chisels, bull/thick chisel and chunni /thin, long chisels to carve the shells since the shell is hard and also difficult to cut. Initially, the blowing shells were plain but nowadays they are engraved with decorative patterns or an event from an epic. Other articles made from conch shells include rings, hair clips, pendants, hookahs, vermillion containers and many more.

After the conch shell decline since the 1980s, the Sankhakar carvers have moved to carve coconut shells, pumpkin shells, wood apple shells, as well as fish scales to keep their tradition alive and earn their livelihood.

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