The nacre on windows of old Goan houses is the subject of a photo blog by Goanetter Rajan Parrikar which is bound to bring back many memories of happier times. Rajan says these translucent window fillers had probably a connection to the Portuguese seafaring history although procured from coastal Kerala and crafted by Pernem artisans.
Another Goan reminder of the Iberian experience was the decorative scallop shells ranging from the small to the very big, once found on the altars of many Goan homes as common as the St Sebastian bound-to-the-stake ivory statuettes carved from African tusks. Anyone who knows about the ancient Camino de Santiago de Compostella (St James' Way) pilgrimage to Cape Finisterre from France or Portugal or other parts of Europe to this Galacian western most part of Spain will make the connection with the several grooves of the scallop shell meeting at one end point. This shell has great significance to this ancient pilgrimage, the third most important in Christendom after Rome and Jerusalem because the martyred remains of James were buried at the Santiago cathedral after being transported by sea from Jerusalem. Not a wonder that this scallop shell famous in Europe for its religious symbolism should find a home in Portuguese Goa, a reflection of the heritage of the European mantle that Goa once proudly wore over its equally proud Hindu cultural tunic. Roland. Sent from Samsung Mobile
