Artefacts unearthed and collected from Kongal Nagar in Pollachi and on the banks of Kousika River were the highlight of the two-day long Namma Kovai expo that began at Suguna Mandapam on the Avinashi Road in Coimbatore on Saturday. The collection included stone and metal coins from the Chera, Chola and Pandya dynasties.
Games from the Sangam age, different types of food preserving and water coolant pots, plates and vessels and urns also displayed and explained by 20 students from various departments in PSG Arts and Science College who are pursuing Diploma in Epigraphy at the college.
Students explained the significance of the artefacts, and richness of the culture and tradition of Tamil Nadu, with focus on the Kongu Region.
A few pictures of the old Coimbatore and its heritage structure were also one display. It was a rare sight to see and listen to a gramophone play at a stall that housed hundreds of radios and other household articles that have vanished from today’s houses.
One will be surprised to know the ‘1’ paise coin that lost its value several decades ago is sold at Rs. 20 a piece. This is 2,000 times its value when it was in use. Similarly the ‘2’ paise coins that lost its value a little later was priced at Rs. 10 a piece. These were among rare Indian and foreign coins and stamps sold by Thondamuthur Coin Society.
A total of 30,000 coins with images of Mahatma Gandhi, Vivekananda and Bhagat Singh with inspiring messages from their lives were also attention getters. A few vintage cars were also displayed at the two-day exhibition. The exhibition also has a range of household items and entertaining events and games for the family.
