Over the years, she has curated exhibitions at Stanford University as well as Bengaluru on the rich history of the Indian spice trade, India’s traditional medicinal system and ancient knowledge systems. Spudich, in collaboration with National Centre For Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bengaluru, was recently invited by Google Cultural Institute to curate an online exhibit of her works. The institute was launched in 2011 to make important cultural material available and accessible to everyone and to digitally preserve them. It partners with renowned institutions to make exhibition and archival content available online.
Spudich’s exhibit on ‘The Indian Spice Trade: In Search for Knowledge and Riches’ with the NCBS, which is now online, shares space with exhibits from iconic institutes like the British Museum, the Museo Galileo in Florence and the Center for Jewish History in New York City.
Lifting The Lid On A Priceless Collection: 400 Pieces Of Ancient Indian Treasures To Be Auc...
Inkwell And Pen Case Or Davat-I Dawlat
A dagger of an emperor, an ornate pen case and a 17th century necklace of the Nizam. These are among the 400 pieces of ancient Indian treasures and Mughal jewels set to go under the hammer in New York on June 19.
It is a known fact that during the reign of the Mughal dynasty, jewelled pen case and inkwell sets were presented to persons of utmost distinction. This emerald, ruby and diamond-set pen case and inkwell has the engraving of a sacred swan or hamsa under the inkwell. It is dated back to the late 16th century and is said to have originated in the Deccan region.
Divided into six parts, it shines a light on the impact and influences of products of Indian botanical-medical knowledge systems and Indian medicines and spices had on shaping history, geography, natural sciences and culture in the early modern world. “I was always fascinated by the Indian knowledge systems and they are unfortunately at the risk of being lost. In India, knowledge transfer of ancient systems was largely verbal. Therefore, documenting it becomes important,” she says.
The exhibit also explores the maritime trade between India, Africa, and the Middle East and China, highlighting the profound impact of Asia trade on Europe. Spudich points out that after the Europeans arrived in India, they realised their medicines were inadequate to deal with tropical diseases. They explored the Indian medical systems that had powerful therapies for tropical diseases. “So, an important commodity Europeans collected from India was the rich legacy of regional botanical medical knowledge for their use in India and in tropical colonies in Asia and the Americas.”
The roots of the exhibition stemmed from a 2008 exhibit she hosted at the NCBS on the importance of Indian botanical knowledge to the science and history of the colonial period. Spudich’s research led her down a rabbit hole of information about traditional medicinal practices, trade routes, folk lore and lost books on the subject, all of which features in the Google exhibit.
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