Pierre Loti described his mid-night arrival in Trivandrum in 1900, in his book India (1906) thus: Towards one o’clock in the morning, great dark palm feathers suddenly cease to interlace above our heads; there is a clearing in the forest and we reach a street. But this street, bathed in the clear, ashy grey light that falls in tropical regions from the stars on moonless nights, seems to be plunged in profound slumber. Houses, which must be white in the day light, now have a bluish tinge. All have a story rising above their verandas, form which little pointed festoons or lace-worked windows look through complicated columns. Lower down, on either side of the closed doors, little lamps shine like glow-worms, these tiny flames are placed in niches to keep watch against the intrusion of civil spirits.
Many animals crouch motionlessly on the steps, as closely as possible to the human habitation, as if they too, sought shelter from some unknown spell; zebus, sheep, and goats who do not even wake as we pass by. There is no other sound than that of our light wheels upon the sanded road, and all these houses, slumbering cattle, and vague shapes of things unseen, are bathed in an uncertain bluish light, that looks like the reflection of some far-off Bengal fire. … Thousands of little lamps filled with coconut oil twinkle amongst the woods, tracing the dim roads in lines of tiny red flames… In front of us there is a vast enclosure with a monumental door surmounted by Miradores and columns opening on to an avenue which rows of lanterns show to be large and wide [East Fort Gate] .
Taming fire
One of the ways in which fire was tamed in the past was to keep it in a slow burning mode, which could be blown into a glowing fire, when required. In the west, we hear of coal being kept smouldering, covering it with dry material (‘white sage’ seems to be a favourite). In Kerala, charcoal (coal from wood, marakkari ) and also from coconut shell ( chirattakkari ) are used even today used by traditional goldsmiths and dhobis. The goldsmiths use rice husk ( umi) and coconut shell to keep a fire smouldering for a whole day. The pot with compressed husk hiding the smouldering charcoal ( Nerippod – Neripp being the Tamil word for fire) is a popular metaphor for a troubled heart in Malayalam literature. The burnt rice husk becomes tooth powder ( Umikkari ). Keeping the fire smouldering using sawdust ( arakkapodi ) compacted into an earthen stove can even today be seen in the city in tiny corner shops that sell tea and coffee.
The famous Indian Dobiuses, a traditional iron, in which smouldering coal is kept, is still used to iron clothes. Many houses in the city and its suburbs, which have firewood stoves, still use the traditional iron of miniature size. Charcoal is also used in kitchens, especially in restaurants that make Tandoori Chicken. Anil, who sells charcoal in his shop in Pazhavangadi, claims that food cooked in a charcoal stove has a different flavour. The charcoal he sells comes from Tamil Nadu.
The Christ Church in Palayam, more than 100 years ago, had oil lamps and also pankas (manual fans), known to have been put in place through the efforts of Rev. C.H.L Wright in 1884. To enable lighting and cleaning, the lamps were hung on chords which that be released to lower the lamps. The pankas were also operated with ropes pulled by menial servants.
Candles seem to have become widely popular in the latter half of the 19th century, though different kind of candles were in use in ancient China, Greece and Rome.
It was in 1834 that a candle making machine was developed in the west and in 1850, distilling of paraffin wax came into being. Candle manufactures were known as Chandlers and elaborate candle holders were called Chandeliers. They seem to have soon reached Travancore too. In Varieties of Vice–Regal Life by Sir William Denison (1870), the author mentions that the palace inside the fort in Trivandrum “ was lighted by a row of glass chandeliers hung from the ceiling, and there were standing lamps on the table besides .”
People seem to have had a fascination for portable devices even in the 19th century. The candle holder used by the traditional post-runner ( Anchal Ottakkaran ), who ran with a spear, with bells attached it, is interesting. He seems to have carried a torch or lamp in the night. When candles arrived, some one seems to have made a portable candle holder, which could be folded into a compact tin box, after use.
(This is the third part of a series on lighting techniques in erstwhile Travancore)
