Handmade in India

Subclusters of
Kanniyakumar
Kanniyakumari
district:
Kanniyakumari
Nagercoil
Suchindram
Tirunelveli district:
Tirunelveli
Pattamadai
Crafts of
KANNIYAKUMARI
Palm leaf work
Kora mat weaving
Seashell craft
Bobbin lace
Kavasam-sheet metal
cladding
Stucco work
Stone carving
Craft
Kora mat
weaving
Bobbin lace
Stone carving
Raw
Materials
Kora grass
Cotton
thread
Cotton
Thread
Black
Granite
RESOURCES
Sources
Banks of the Tampraparani
Ambasamudram
Nagercoil
Thingampothai and
Amaravathivillai
KANNIYAKUMARI TOWN IS the southernmost tip of India
which is at the confluence of the Bay of Bengal,Indian Ocean
and the Arabian Sea.Bounded by Tirunelveli in the east and
Kerala on the northwest,it is believed to be the aboded of
Kumari,the Virgin Goddess.Th 8th century Kumari Amman
Temple dedicate to her is a popular pilgrimage centre and the
hub for many indigenous crafts like metal claddings for
deities,palm leaf and seashell objects.Palm grows profusely in
the region and fibre from its leaves used in basketry and
packaging,has been developed into a sustainable craft.Christian
missionaries have introduced crafts like bobbin or pillow lace
and embroidery.Suchindram is a small temple town closely
linked with the legend of the Kumari.Stanumalaya Temple
dedicated to the Hindu trinity,Brahma,Vishnu and Shiva has
massive brightly coloured gopurams or gateways embellished
with sculptures depicting stories from the epics.Suchindram is
a flourishing centre for stucco and sheet metal work mainly
commissioned by temples in Tamil Nadu and
Kerala.Tirunelveli is in the fertile tract fed by the River
Tampraparani and paddyd is the main crop of the
region.Tirunelveli is the district headquarters dominated by the
Kanthimathi Nellaiyappar Temple complex.During the Annual
chariot festival,which attracts thousands of devotees,the
temple`s chariots are led in procession through the
town.Pattamadai village is famous for its fine quality floor
mats made of kora or sedge grass which grows in abundance
on the fertile river banks.
ACCESS
Kanniyakumari has road and rail connections with Chennai
(635km),Madurai and all other towns in the state.The nearest
1. A farmer uses a palm leaf basket for carrying and storing groundnuts cultivated in his airport is Madurai(235km).
field in Vallikulam,Ambassamudram.
2. Woman wearing solidd gold earrings,Tirunelveli.
3. Palmyra palm trees in Tirunelveli are used to make baskets,winnowing trays and fans.
4. Craftsperson weaving a kora grassd mat on a horizontal floor loom at a mat weaversd`
cooperative society in Pattamadai.
5. Image of Infant Jesus made in papier-mache moulding,at a roadside shrine in
Karumkulam