KOCHI: A bundle of palm leaf manuscripts dating back at least 350 years and belonging to Paliam Museum at Chendamangalam in Kochi has gone missing, leaving authorities stumped. The missing item was among the 30 bundles of rare palm leaf manuscripts given for conservation purposes to Muziris Heritage Project (MHP), India’s largest heritage conservation project of which the museum is also a part. They are considered to be of archaeological importance.
Making matters worse, the original paper identifying and cataloguing the collection of the 30 bundles has also gone missing. This means none can identify the contents of the missing manuscript. The identification and cataloguing work had been carried out by renowned scholar late K Kunjunni Raja.
The manuscripts had been among the several artefacts that were kept in the Muziris Heritage region and damaged during the 2018 flood. Later, a team led by M Narayana Namboothiri, the art restorer who headed the Muziris Conservation Lab, restored them. Following this, the 30 bundles, along with Kunjunni Raja’s paper manuscript and a collection of rare letters, were officially handed over to MHP for conservation.
Museum manager seeks govt action
“When the Muziris Heritage Project handed the rare palm leaf manuscripts back to us, there were only 29 bundles. One bundle was missing. We reckon someone who knew the content of the rare manuscript stole it,” alleged Krishnabalan Paliath, manager of Paliam Eswara Seva Trust, which manages Paliam kovilakam (palace). He said they have been knocking on the doors of MHP for the past two-and-half years to get the lost palm leaf manuscript back.
The 30 bundles contain the Ramayana, some portions of Mahabharata, details of Paliam land, rare ayurveda texts among others. “It’s difficult to know what the missing bundle contains until we find Kunujunni Raja’s paper manuscript,” he said.
When contacted, MHP MD Manoj Kumar K admitted that one bundle of the manuscript was missing. “I have submitted a report to the tourism director. It is now up to the department to take action and recover the manuscript,” he said. Kumar said Muziris Heritage Project has copies of Kunjunni Raja’s document. Krishnabalan Paliath said officers of the tourism department and MHP are yet to realise the seriousness of the incident. “We want urgent action from the government to find the missing manuscript and return it to the museum,” he said.