For those who have a special eye on rare manuscripts and heritage wealth of Tamilnadu, here comes a rare opportunity to relish.

State Minister for School Education and Archaeology Thangam Thennarasu has inaugurated a special exhibition on rare manuscripts at Centenary Exhibition Hall of the Connemara Government Museum on Friday.

‘Manuscripts from old ages to recent date are on display here. They have more value but less visible. These are the testimonials of our heritage of the past. People should visit this exhibition and enhance their knowledge of art,’ the Minister said after inaugurating the exhibition.

There were manuscripts in different shapes and sizes with beautiful illustrations and line drawings. Some are even written in golden letters. Having a diverse range, the palm scripts and age-old writing materials have alphabets of different languages including Tamil, Telugu, Burmese, Pali, Grantha and Sanskrit on various subjects such as astrology, religion, ayurveda and literature.

A glance at some of the rare manuscripts would show a Siva Lingam shaped palm leaf manuscript, Kari Naal manuscript (Tamil), Sangam literature like Thirumurugaarupadai (Tamil), Soolini Mantram (Sanskrit), Tholkaappiyam (Tamil), illustrated manuscripts of Gita Govindham and painted planks among others.

The paper manuscript of Sivagita and palm leaf manuscripts of Adhyathma Ramayanam in Sharadha script, Ishavashya Upanishad by Ananada Grisha and Saptharshi Puja were other notable exhibits for public view.

After going through the exhibits one could understand the causes for deterioration of manuscripts due to various damages, defects and mishandling, besides the ravages of time.

The manuscript exhibition would inculcate in the minds of the visitors, an idea about the vast wealth of ancient India and promote a sense of pride in taking care of them.  

This unique exhibition would be open to the public from 27 June to 2 July at the Centenary Exhibition Hall of the Government Museum.