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British Museum to loan sacred Srimanta Sankardeva textile to Assam for 18 months
Assam CM said that the textile — Brindavani Bastra — which has depictions of Lord Krishna’s life, especially his childhood in Vrindavan would be loaned beginning in 2027
Guwahati: The British Museum in London has agreed to loan a sacred textile linked to 15th–16th century Vaishnav saint and social reformer Srimanta Sankardeva to Assam for public display, chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Saturday.
Sarma said that the textile — Brindavani Bastra — which has depictions of Lord Krishna’s life, especially his childhood in Vrindavan, would be loaned for a period of 18 months beginning in 2027.
“We had been trying for many years to bring the Brindavani Bastra to Assam so that people of the state could view it. It is a matter of immense happiness that the British Museum has agreed to our request and will be giving the textile to Assam on loan for a period of 18 months,” Sarma added.
The Brindavani Bastra is a 9.37-metre-long and 2.31-metre-wide textile made with silk, cotton, and brass thread. Sankardeva is said to have been instrumental in creating this textile with a team of expert weavers at the Patbausi Satra in Barpeta district of Assam, following directions of King Naranarayan of the Koch dynasty.
The Brindavani Bastra made its way from Assam to Tibet, and was later taken to the British Museum, where it is currently housed. Another such textile, also called Brindavani Bastra, is housed at the Guimet Museum in Paris.
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In a letter to CM Sarma, director of the British Museum Nicholas Cullinan informed that as a first step towards giving the textile on loan, a digital display will be conducted in February next year to “provide meaningful public access and engagement with this important object while preparations for a physical loan progress.”
“In order to ensure that there are required measures for safe display and conservation of this important piece of Assam’s history, we are constructing a new museum in Guwahati. Land has already been allotted for the same and the JSW Group will construct the building as part of their CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) initiative and hand it over to the Assam government later,” Sarma said.
The British Museum announced that they are developing a new edition of the textile’s curator Richard Blurton’s book on the Brindavani Bastra, which will be translated into Hindi and Assamese to ensure wider accessibility and engagement, particularly among scholars and local communities in Assam.
“We see this as a significant opportunity to deepen cultural ties and to support public appreciation and scholarship around this exceptional piece,” the letter by Cullinan, which HT has seen, said.
CM Sarma informed that the British Museum will give the textile on loan provided a guarantee is given by the central government that it will be returned after 18 months. He said a process in this regard has also begun.
