Sanjay Suri
in London
http://www.rediff.com/us/2001/nov/27uk.htm
Priceless Indian
treasures that are part of the queen's collection that will not
be returned to India can be seen at the largest
exhibition of crown treasures to be launched next year.
Among the riches
on display will be the famous Bird of Paradise from the throne of
Tipu Sultan.
The British
took away this priceless figure in gold and emeralds after the death
of the legendary warrior king of Mysore. The Indian treasures will
be part of many to be displayed in the largest ever exhibition of
crown treasures.
The exhibition
will mark the golden jubilee of the coronation of the queen.
The exhibition
will open at the Buckingham Palace in May and is expected to last
nine months. In all 437 of the best artefacts from the royal collection
will be on display.
The two big
auction houses in London, Christie's and Sotheby's, regularly auction
treasures from India. Others are housed in
Britain's many museums, notably the Victoria & Albert Museum.
But the collection
that lies with the queen is unrivalled. The palace will also exhibit
other treasures, including paintings by European painters like Rembrandt
and Van Dyck. The palace is reportedly keen not to overplay any
suggestion of British Raj nostalgia.
The Indian treasures
on display will still be only a tiny fraction of what the queen
has in her collection.
An inventory
of objects in her possession has never been made public. There are
periodic demands in India for the return of the Kohinoor diamond,
which sits in the crown of the queen's mother.
Other emotive
demands continue to be made for the return of such treasures as
Shivaji's sword and some of the possessions of Guru Gobind Singh.
The palace is reportedly keen not to fuel such demands by showing
too much that India might want back.
Indo-Asian News
Service
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