Aranmula Kannadi – The mysterious miraculous mirror from Kerala

Aranmula Kannadi, meaning the Aranmula mirror, is a handmade metal-alloy mirror, made in Aranmula, a small town in Pathanamthitta, Kerala, India. This little village of Aranmula is  one place  which lives up to the hype of  Kerala tourism’s  sales pitch of  ‘God’s  Own  Country’. Located on the banks of the languid river pamba, Aranmula comes alive in a frenzy of spectacular snake-boat races and water carnivals during Onam religious festivities. Aranmula is also home to a waning handicraft tradition which is a technological marvel in its own right. The original Aranmula Metal Mirror, a unique art made by the traditional craftsmen of Aranmula (Kerala) with bell-metal is linked to the famous Aranmula Parthasarathy Temple. They are produced by one extended family in Aranmula. The mirror is made from a copper-tin alloy with trace elements. To this day, the composition remains a closely guarded secret, passed from one generation to the next. Unlike the normal “silvered” glass mirrors, it is a metal-alloy mirror or first surface mirror or front surface reflection mirror, which eliminates secondary reflections and aberrations typical of back surface mirrors.

History

Centuries ago, the royal chief brought eight families of experts in temple arts and crafts from Tirunelveli district to Aranmula to work on the mirrors in the Parthasarathy temple. The artisans are said to have sampled on this technique while they were making a crown for their deity. The temple chief was so delighted with this mirror and he included it among the eight Auspicious items used in worship in the temple and the deity has ever since ‘idol of the mirror’. In Puranas it has been described as the mirror of Goddess Parvathi.

Key Features of the Shesha Ayurveda Aranmula Mirror

Govt. of India Registration Number: PTA-1457-9/4/2013

• Aranmula Kannadi is a front side reflection mirror compared to a normal mirror which has backside reflection. It doesn’t have aberrations which usually has with normal mirror
• Aranmula mirror is a metal mirror where as traditional mirror is made using mercury
• Aranmula mirror is a 100% handmade mirror
• It usually takes 6-7 days of manual work for manufacturing single mirror
• The secret metal recipe undergoes minimum 10,000 times of polishing to make the precious Aranmula mirror
• The complex metallic recipe of the mirror is only known to a single family in Kerala
• Geographical Indication tagged product. This product can only be manufactured in Aranmula, Kerala
• The British Museum in London has an Aranmula metal mirror 45 centimetres tall in its collection.
• It is believed in Kerala that this mirror brings prosperity to the house.
• Traditional Aranmula Valkannadi has historical and cultural value and are thought to bring good luck, wealth and prosperity to your home.
• Aranmula Mirror is considered to be one of the eight auspicious item or “ashtamangalyam” that play a role in the entry of the bride at a wedding venue .
• These unique metal mirrors are the result of Kerala’s rich cultural and metallurgical traditions.
• The mirrors received a geographical indication (GI) tag in 2004-05. GI identifies a product as originating from a particular place, and whose quality, reputation or other characteristics are attributable to its geographical source.

Aranmula Kannadi Maintenance Tips

• Keep the mirror under room temperature away from heat and dust
• Please do not take the mirror to bathroom or any other wet places
• Do Not touch by fingers on the reflective surface. Finger prints with moisture should be cleaned off immediately to prevent corrosion
• Use cotton/velvet cloth and rub the surface very softly and smoothly in vertical direction.
• In case of any fungus formation due to careless handling, use few drops of edible oil on the affected portion with the fingers and rub it for one or two minutes and then clean it
• Keep your Aranmula Kannadi open and exposed to air.
• NEVER KEEP ARANMULA KANNADI CLOSED IN A BOX.

For Frame/Mirror cleaning: Use any metal polish (specially made for brass) for cleaning the Aranmula Kannadi surface; apply a thin layer of metal polish and then polish with mild cotton clothes. as you polish more, it will be shinier.

Recommended product for mirror cleaning: We recommend ‘DARA Allied Products’ – a liquid polish available in amazon India https://amzn.to/3rIhhQm

To know the quality of reflection on an Aranmula metal mirror, the following example would be sufficient. When you touch a piece of paper on the surface of an ordinary mirror, a gap remains between the paper and the image produced. But, in the case of the Aranmula metal mirror, there will be no gap between the image and the object. This indicates the fact that only a real, distortion-free image is produced on an Aranmula Kannadi.

If you are looking to buy something very special, unique and something which can be treasured for a lifetime, a very unique gift to your loved ones, this is your perfect choice – The Original Aranmula Metal Mirror ( Aranmula Kannadi) with hologram sticker from Govt. of India which denotes its authenticity and unique craftsmanship.

Completely Handmade Product. Shesha Ayurveda team works closely with one extended family from Aranmula to bring these unique handcrafted mirror to you all. This is 100% authentic

 

Frame made with Bronze and mirror made with Tin and Copper
Height  20.5 cm | Width 10 cm | mirror diameter – 2.5 inch
Weight – 303 g

Return/Refund Policy – We don’t accept any returns or provide any replacement for the mirror. Once you order the mirror, Don’t accept the package if it’s arrived in a tampered/damaged condition. You need to reject package upon delivery and same should be mentioned on POD slip. Once you receive the package, Please do a 360° unboxing video of opening the shipment. No missing item claims will be accepted if not accompanied by a 360 degree unboxing video. Also, We replace the mirror only if there is a physical damage that happened during transit. Such damages should be reported to us within 24 hours of receipt of package to contact@sheshaayurveda.com. Every customer who purchase the mirror must strictly go through the care instructions given here.  Mirror damage as a result of mishandling of the product  will not be replaced by us. No requests for refund/replacement coming after 1 week of receiving the product will be entertained.

DISCLAIMER – Due to variations in monitors and browsers, device screen settings, the lighting difference etc, the colors may have slight differences from the image(s) displayed.

IMPORTANT : Don’t buy any cheap lookalikes / replicas from anywhere like in exhibitions, antique outlets etc, because original Aranmula Kannadi ( Aranmula metal mirrors) are not cheap. they are expensive and should come with proper authority and proof. 

Cleaning the brass frame:

The Frame of Aranmula Kannadi is made up of brass. so when we expose it in to atmosphere for a long time, dust or other dirt may get on the mirror frame. For cleaning the mirror frame, Take a piece of smooth cotton cloth, fold it twice and put drops of brasso ( Brasso is a liquid solution which can get in most of the metal/paint shops) on the cloth and rub it with the other part of the cloth. If any change is seen on the frame by rubbing with brasso, then clean it with a piece of smooth cotton cloth.

Cleaning the mirror part:

If someone by mistake touches the mirror, their finger prints can be seen on mirror surface. this can be cleaned off, only if you rub it with cotton /velvet cloth smoothly on the surface of the mirror within 5 minutes in vertical direction and if it is not properly cleaned, then sprinkle a bit Brass cleaner available in the market like “Dhara Cleaner ” on velvet cloth or mirror cleaning cloth ,Fold the Cloth to 3 layers, Cleaning Drops should be upper layer and Clean with Bottom layer on Aranmula Kannadi and hold it in a slanting position allowing the dust and other particles rubbed off from the reflective surface-font.

How to rub the mirror part – for cleaning the Aranmula Kannadi

Remember to keep Aranmula Kannadi in a place with good air circulation, and exposed to the atmosphere – means Aranmula Kannadi should not keep in any box or a closed contained for a long time. also avoid placing the Kannadi nearby the wet / humid / places with extreme temperature etc.