PM Sangrahalaya showcases Nehru’s walking sticks in special exhibition
The Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya has opened a special exhibition titled 'Walking with Legacy', displaying 31 walking sticks and batons belonging to Jawaharlal Nehru from its reserve collection, highlighting their craftsmanship, symbolism and historical significance until July 24
New Delhi: A range of ornate walking sticks that belonged to India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, including a wooden one with his image carved onto it, is on display at the Pradhanmantri Sanghralaya complex here as part of a special exhibition that began on Tuesday, officials said.
The special exhibition showcases a curated collection of walking sticks and batons drawn from the museum’s “reserve collection”. A set of about 31 objects is on display at the exhibition that will run till July 24, said a senior official of the Prime Ministers’ Museum and Library (PMML). Titled “Walking with Legacy”, it seeks to “explore the craftsmanship of these objects and their role as symbols of leadership, authority, status and personal identity, along with their association with distinguished leaders and eminent personalities,” he said.
Hosted at Parichay Gallery in the old building of the museum complex, the event also showcases photographs of Mahatma Gandhi walking with his stick, and a few images from the Sengol (ceremonial sceptre) installation ceremony held in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the new Parliament building in May 2023.
The PMML, or Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya, was opened to the public in April 2022. Previously known as the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, or NMML, it is located at the old Teen Murti Bhawan complex in central Delhi. The heritage building with its sprawling campus, which was turned into a memorial after Nehru’s death in 1964, houses several objects, memorabilia and archival photos and records associated with his life and legacy.
In 2023, the NMML Society was renamed to the PMML Society. The curated collection from the “PMML toshakhana” features the walking sticks and batons as “markers of identity and governance” and highlights their historical, cultural, artistic and symbolic significance, the official said.
A toshakhana generally refers to a repository of gifted items. When asked who these walking sticks on display belonged to, the PMML official said, “All these objects belonged to Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.” The walking sticks showcased are symbols of craftsmanship, with many of them carrying decorative designs and elaborate details, while some have ornamental handles on top, including an artistic lion figure and the Sarnath pillar design, suggesting that these were ceremonial gifts.
One of them, a wooden walking stick, has an image of Nehru — depicted up to his bust level and wearing the Gandhi topi — engraved near its top portion with the caption: “Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister of India”. The exhibition is aimed at making the museum’s reserve collection accessible to the public while promoting greater awareness of India’s rich cultural heritage and encouraging meaningful visitor engagement with museum collections, officials said.
Walking sticks and batons are more than functional objects; they are examples of craftsmanship that combine utility, durability and artistic expression, they said.
“Artisans carefully select durable materials such as ebony, mahogany, rosewood, teak, sheesham, bamboo, malacca cane and other hardwoods. The wood is seasoned, cut, shaped, turned and polished into the desired form using traditional woodworking techniques,” read a note on the exhibition shared by an official.
Depending on their purpose, walking sticks and batons may be left plain or richly ornamented. Handles and shafts are often enhanced with materials such as ivory, bone, brass, silver, copper, gold, gemstones or enamel. The finished pieces are assembled and coated with wax, oil, shellac or varnish for protection and durability, the note said.
The collection presents diverse decorative elements, such as nature-inspired motifs; floral and geometric patterns; family crests, emblems and symbolic designs; engraved inscriptions; and lacquer work and natural wood finishes, it said.
