Over 200 years ago, the Sikh Empire used money to get an environmental message to go viral. They minted coins with a leaf motif – Leaf-Mint Mark coins – to create awareness about environment conservation as there was a popular belief in Punjab that the famines of the 1780s were a message from the Almighty to stop harming the earth. These coins were first struck in 1788 CE and were in circulation till the end of Sikh rule in Punjab in 1849

What is a statuette of Goddess Lakshmi doing in the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, Italy? The ivory statuette was discovered in 1938 in the ruins of the ancient Roman city of Pompeii. Called ‘Pompeii Lakshmi’, it is believed to have been crafted in Bhokardan in Maharashtra, then a wealthy city under the Satavahana dynasty (2nd BCE – 3rd CE), and is evidence of the strong trade links between these rulers and the Romans.

Did you know that a 6th century CE Buddha statuette was found in an ancient Viking trading town on the island of Helgo in Sweden? Believed to have been made in Kashmir, the statuette was found in 1954 along with treasures from different parts of the world as the Vikings travelled vast distances to trade as well as to plunder, pirate and raid.

Did you know that Tipu Sultan had a musical instrument that ‘terrified the enemy’? Called 'Tipu's Tiger', it is an automaton in the form of a tiger in the act of attacking a European man. When played, the man’s arm flails and the organ emits the sounds of the roaring cat and the cries of its victim! The tiger was Tipu’s royal emblem, and even if the Tiger of Mysore was killed by the British in battle in 1799, in life he appears to have relished an imagined victory. Tipu’s Tiger is in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.

Did you know that some of India’s oldest known art is in Bhimbetka, not far from Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh? Spread across seven hills are the Bhimbetka rock shelters, 750 of them, with cave paintings that go back 10,000 years. The rock art of Bhimbetka, located in the Vindhyachal hills, ranges from depictions of mythical animals to scenes of war. They offer a glimpse into the evolution of life from nomadic hunter-gatherers to settled cultivators, and also into prehistoric religious beliefs.

Over 200 years ago, the Sikh Empire used money to get an environmental message to go viral. They minted coins with a leaf motif – Leaf-Mint Mark coins – to create awareness about environment conservation as there was a popular belief in Punjab that the famines of the 1780s were a message from the Almighty to stop harming the earth. These coins were first struck in 1788 CE and were in circulation till the end of Sikh rule in Punjab in 1849

What is a statuette of Goddess Lakshmi doing in the National Archaeological Museum in Naples, Italy? The ivory statuette was discovered in 1938 in the ruins of the ancient Roman city of Pompeii. Called ‘Pompeii Lakshmi’, it is believed to have been crafted in Bhokardan in Maharashtra, then a wealthy city under the Satavahana dynasty (2nd BCE – 3rd CE), and is evidence of the strong trade links between these rulers and the Romans.

Did you know that a 6th century CE Buddha statuette was found in an ancient Viking trading town on the island of Helgo in Sweden? Believed to have been made in Kashmir, the statuette was found in 1954 along with treasures from different parts of the world as the Vikings travelled vast distances to trade as well as to plunder, pirate and raid.

Did you know that Tipu Sultan had a musical instrument that ‘terrified the enemy’? Called 'Tipu's Tiger', it is an automaton in the form of a tiger in the act of attacking a European man. When played, the man’s arm flails and the organ emits the sounds of the roaring cat and the cries of its victim! The tiger was Tipu’s royal emblem, and even if the Tiger of Mysore was killed by the British in battle in 1799, in life he appears to have relished an imagined victory. Tipu’s Tiger is in the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.

Did you know that some of India’s oldest known art is in Bhimbetka, not far from Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh? Spread across seven hills are the Bhimbetka rock shelters, 750 of them, with cave paintings that go back 10,000 years. The rock art of Bhimbetka, located in the Vindhyachal hills, ranges from depictions of mythical animals to scenes of war. They offer a glimpse into the evolution of life from nomadic hunter-gatherers to settled cultivators, and also into prehistoric religious beliefs.