Tanjore Art Plate

The creation of the Thanjavur Art Plates is credited to raja Serfoji Ii (1797-1832), the the Maratha ruler of Thanjavur,who asked his royal artisans to create metal artifact that would reflect the glory of his kingdom. Silver, brass, and copper are encrusted on to each other to create this stunning piece of art. The effect of silver in high relief on the reddish copper ground is unusual and striking. Artisans of the Vishwakarma community follow this hereditary profession in Thanjavur. This Thanjavur metal plate has as its base a plate of brass prepared by a heavy-metal worker and the relief on copper is worked upon by a jeweler while the encrusting is done by a stone-setter with silver. The tools used to create this metal craft item are hammers, pincers, moulds, punches, chisels, grinding stones and a forge.