Old kitchen recipes used to restore heritage structures
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Mumbai: Rather strange consignments are being transported to the Vasai fort over the past few weeks. Bagfuls of gallnut are being brought in from Andhra Pradesh and emptied into vats of lime to which jaggery water and beaten eggs are being added. Its the recipe to restore former glory to the heritage structure.
As it goes about the task of reviving the medieval fort, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is not the only agency that is looking to traditional methods of conservation. The city museum has gone back to nature since the past few years and conservation architects also acknowledge the merit of Indian methods of preservation, which uses common kitchen ingredients and natural herbs.
In Vasai, ASI superintending archaeologist G Narasimhan has adopted the method that he used successfully in a Ganesh temple in Alibag, albeit on a much larger scale this time. The super structure of that monument was leaking heavily. Its restoration required pointing (filling the gap between stones) with stucco plaster, which is prepared by mixing sticky ingredients like jaggery water, egg and gallnut with lime, Narasimhan said. This preparation also brings a naturally dark effect to the lime plaster.
Jaggery water is traditionally used for waterproofing, said conservation architect Vikas Dilawari. However, the use of this method is restricted by the fact that skilled masons required to mix the plaster are difficult to come by. The ASI sourced workmen from Andhra Pradesh.
Stucco plaster also uses black colouring matter extracted from the cooked fruit of wild pomegranates (nareli). In fact, the PWD used to follow Bernard Fieldens technical manual on conservation guidelines that lists black sugar (gur) and hemp (san) while inlay work binders are made with gum, gur, urad dal and other classical stuff like patacha, mastagi and tukhm-ibalanga, Dilawari said.
Lime mortar using natural ingredients is currently being used to restore the exterior of the Chhattrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (Prince of Wales Museum). Indias Lime Man, Ravi Gundu Rao, is the expert who is assigned the task. Before cement came to India in the 1920s, we only used mud- and lime-based mortars. So our heritage buildings are all built in this manner. In fact, Europeans have been known to use pigs urine and horse serum as coagulant in mortar, he laughs. In India, we use regional variants like eggwhite, black jaggery and coconut.
The museum saw the good side of adopting home remedies a few years ago. Hardly any chemicals are used for cleaning or preserving our artefacts, said director Sabyasachi Mukherjee. From 2002-2006, museum officials conducted a scientific study on the merits of traditional methods of conservation along with the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR).
As an outcome, vials with pierced caps have been placed in glass cases, especially those with the collection of miniature paintings. These bottles contain an ayurvedic repellant called vekhand (sweet flag), which controls the spread of fungus and bacteria on any surface, be it paper, textile or old manuscripts.
Naphtha balls are not used anymore after we found that it tends to turn acidic and leaves stains once exposed to the air, said Mukherjee. The vials are replaced after three months.