Churiwalah
This article is an extract from
THE TRIBES and CASTES of BENGAL. Ethnographic Glossary. Printed at the Bengal Secretariat Press. 1891. . |
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Churiwalah
This Muhammadan trade is quite distinct from that of the Hindu Kacharu, the former manufacturing glass bracelets of different colours, and ornamenting them with tinfoil, while the latter only works in lac.
Glass in crude lumps (thakka) is imported from Cawnpore, and is either of a dull white or of a pale green colour. Various tints are given to it by the Churi-walah. By mixing lead and tin a yellow colour is obtained; with a salt of copper, called "chhip," imported from Nepaul, a sky blue (asmani) is formed; with sulphate of copper a deep green; with a mixture of lead and zinc, or pewter (jasta), and tin, a deep red.
Glass bracelets are made in the following way. The furnace (bhathi), partially sunk in the ground with a wood fire underneath, contains a large crucible which, being of smaller diameter
1 Mre. Kindersley, writing from Allahabad in 1768, says: "The finest filigrane (an old name for this embroidery) is made at Dacca. This is work which requires great delicacy and patience; it is not perforated like the filigrane made in Europe, but the gold or silver thread is cut into long pieces like fine threads." Letters, &c, p. 241. (London, 1777.)
than the furnace, allows the flame to ascend and heat the trays arranged around. There are six openings into the furnace, and opposite each a workman sits, while the implements at hand are a "salaka," or iron-pointed rod, with which the molten material is extracted, and a spear-shaped piece of iron, called "mala," with which the glass is fashioned into a circular band. At this stage the material is again heated, and, with a thin iron rod (patkar), the band is transformed into a narrow ring, which, being placed on an earthen cone (sarkandi, or sancha), the proper size is given to the bracelet.
These artisans know nothing of the art of annealing, consequently when the bracelet is finished it is placed on the ground at the side of the furnace and allowed to cool gradually.
A skilful workman will turn out a thousand bracelets a day; but an unskilful about half that number only. In Dacca these bracelets are in great demand, the market price being two anas (3d.) a hundred; but in Hindustan eight hundred are bought for that sum.
Another branch of this trade is ornamenting the bracelets with tin-foil. Lac is smeared along the circumference of the glass circle, and the foil, often of a golden colour, is stuck on. Bracelets ornamented in this manner and sold for five anas a hundred, are generally worn by Muhammadan females of the lower ranks, as shell-bracelets, the correct wrist decoration of Hindu females, cannot be put on by them.
