Metalwork

Brass, bronze, iron and inlay — fire, hammer and lost wax.

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Brass handicrafts of Moradabad, showing engraved and polished pieces
Metalwork · North India

Moradabad Brass: The Metalwork of Peetal Nagri

In Moradabad, sand from the Ramganga, fire, and a hand-held chisel turn plain brass into engraved work the world has bought for four centuries.

Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh · November 4, 2026
A Dokra figure, its surface textured with the wax-thread work characteristic of the craft
Metalwork · East India

Dokra: The Lost-Wax Bronze of Bikna

In Bikna village, every Dokra figure is cast once and only once, because the mould must be broken to free it.

Bikna, Bankura, West Bengal · November 4, 2026
A 17th-century Bidriware ewer from the Deccan, now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London
Metalwork · South India

Bidriware: The Blackened Silver of Bidar

Silver inlaid on metal blackened with soil from Bidar Fort — Bidriware is the Deccan's most dramatic craft, and one of its most endangered.

Bidar, Karnataka · November 4, 2026