Interesting facts about Modi's gifts to Trump

Interesting facts about Modi's gifts to Trump

PM Narendra Modi gifted US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump some very thoughtful gifts during their first meeting.

Here we get you some interesting facts associated with each of these gifts:

Gift 1: Stamp for POTUS

During his meeting with Trump, Modi gifted a folio containing the 1965 dated original commemorative postal stamp.

• This stamp was issued in 1965 to mark the death centenary of Abraham Lincoln.
• The stamp honours the memory of a great American president.
• It also symbolises closeness of ideals" Lincoln and Mahatma Gandhi believed in.
• Both Lincoln and Gandhi believed in the basic goodness of the common citizen, and in emancipation of the downtrodden leading from the front, with indomitable courage against the forces of reaction and outmoded beliefs
• Trump gave Modi a guided tour of President's residence quarters in White House including Lincoln bedroom.
• He showed the PM a copy of President Lincoln's famous Gettysburg address and the desk on which he wrote it.

Following are the Indian Commemorative Stamps Released in 1965

Stamp	Release Date	Occassion
Vidyapati	17th November 1965	Vidyapati Comm.
Chittaranjan Das	5th November 1965	95th Birth Ann. of Chittaranjan Das
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel	31st October 1965	90th Birth Ann. of Vallabhbhai Patel
Govind Ballabh Pant	10th September 1965	G. B. Pant Comm.
Climbers on Summit	15th June 1965	Indian Mount Everest Expedition
I. C. Y Symbol	26th June 1965	Intl. Cooperation Year
Jamsetji Tata	7th January 1965	125th Birth Ann. of Jamsetji Tata
Lala Lajpatrai	28th January 1965	Lala Lajpatrai Comm.
I. C. C. Emblem & Globe	8th February 1965	20th Congress of Intl. Chamber of Commerce
Everlasting Flame	27th May 1965	1st Ann. of Jawaharlal Nehru's Death
Abraham Lincoln	15th April 1965	Death Cent. of Abraham Lincoln
ITU Emblem	17th May 1965	Cent. of International Telecommunications Union
'Jalusha' Freighter	5th April 1965	Natl. Maritime Day

Gift 2: Bracelet, Tea, Honey, Wooden Chest and Shawl for FLOTUS

For FLOTUS, PM presented a hamper containing a traditional, handcrafted Himachali silver bracelet, tea and honey from Kangra valley. Hand-woven shawls from Jammu and Kashmir, and Himachal Pradesh were also presented to FLOTUS.

The Bracelet

• Typical Himachali bracelets are known as “Kangan/Kare”.
• These are thinner and plainer in the middle.
• In Chamba, this jewellery is called “Gokhru”.
• This area was occupied by Buddhists from Lahul and Spiti, the Hindu Gujjar and Bakarwal nomads as well as Hindus of Kullu and Chamba.
• Designs of the jewellery merge Indian influences with Tibetan.
• Jewellery motifs are inspired by nature such as a tiger's head, a lotus flower, pipal tree leaves etc.
• Jewellery is a popular product of the Himachal silversmiths. And although the designs are still traditional, the ornaments are lighter and more practical.
• Modern innovations in the crafts include the making of intricately carved silver lamp stands, tea pots, wine or butter cups and metal sculpture.
• These follow indigenous shapes and are decorated with finely carved patterns, which in addition to the local flora and fauna, depict stories from the epics.
• Fine jewellery enamelled is a speciality of this region.
• Kangra silversmiths worked with silver and aimed for deep blue and green enamelling.
• They created beautiful pieces such as elliptical anklets, solid iron-headed bangles, hair ornaments, peepal-leaf-shaped forehead ornaments.
• Also part of the selection are necklaces known as “Chandanhaar” and pendants with motifs of the mother goddess Maa.
• Chokers or Kach and the collar-like hansali are also common.
• Heavy anklets, bangles and silver bracelets were either solid or filled with shellac - with clasps in the shape of crocodile or lions heads.
• In the Tibetan influenced Lahaul-Spiti, ornaments are studded with semi precious stones like coral, turquoise, amber and mother-of-pearl

Tea and Honey From Kangra

• Kangra is known for being the home of the most finely blended green and black teas.
• Kangra tea comes from Hybrid China tea shrubs and has a unique quality of its own.
• The Dhauladhar mountain range serves as a scenic backdrop, with tea estates located 5,500m above sea level.
• Handrolled oolong tea, silver needle white tea and high quality green tea are also produced along with the orthodox black tea.
• In 2005, Kangra was given GI status.
• Fruit producing areas of Kullu, Mandi, Sirmaur, Shimla, Chamba and Kangra in HP have transformed the state's economy through honey production and provided an occupation for the people of this state.
• HP is the biggest producer of Himalayan honey.
• In Kangra, an average of 1200 MT honey annually for the last few years was produced.

Shawls From HP and Kashmir

• Origin of shawls can be traced back to 700 years.
• Zain-Ul-Ahadin in mid 14th century introduced the art of weaving in the Kashmir valley.
• HP is also known for its unique shawls.
• Silk and cotton thread is used for embroidery and the workmanship is exquisite.
• The shawl industry in these northern states is well established.
• Akbar, India's monarch presented a Kashmir jamavar shawl to the Queen of England.
• Monarchs from India are not the only ones who gifted Indian shawls. Empress Josephine received Kashmir shawls as a gift from Napoleon.
• Each shawl takes a long time to make. The beautiful kani Kashmiri shawl takes 1 whole year to complete, for example.

Wooden Chest

• An intricately carved wooden chest with delicate inlay pattern handcrafted in Punjab's Hoshiarpur completed the lineup.
• This wooden chest was crafted by a local artisan, Kamaljit Matharu (31), and his father, Rupan Matharu (52), both national awardees.
• Priced at INR 1.55 lakh and made from sheesham wood, the chest is 22-inchx15-inch
• In 1989, Rupan received the state award for craftsmanship, followed by the Ministry of Textiles’ National Merit Award for Crafts (1994) and the National Award for Craftsmanship (1997) of the Union Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises.
• Kamaljit joined his father at the age of 18 and went on to win the National Merit Award for Crafts and the National Award for Craftsmanship in 2009.
• Both have been part of Indian exhibitions in the UK, Brazil and other countries.
• Punjab's district Hoshiarpur produces dark sheesham furniture with finely detailed dense foliage patterns that are both engraved and inlaid with acrylic, camel bone and shell.
• The motifs are either of Persian origin or adaptions of the exquisite wood carving in the havelis, mansions, of Hoshiarpur.
• The foliage patterns, usually cypress tress, that appear in most of the inlay work are now being supplemented with figures and landscapes, the details of which are etched and coloured with natural ink.
• Furniture elements are turned on power lathes and the rotating pieces are coated with multiple layers of lac, usually applied in three layers-white,black and red,in that order.
• Yellow is occasionally added as well; purple, the once characteristic colour of lac-coated ware from Hoshiarpur, is seldom used now.
• After the lac is applied, a sharp metal stylus is used to etch motifs.
• Hoshiarpur's kharadi, lathe turners, who make turned wooden furniture, ornamented with motifs etched on a lac coating are renowned all over the country.

Given the rich history and incredible cultural legacy of Modi's gifts to Trump, one can see how this will communicate the closeness of Indo-US ties and the growing value of the bilateral relationship. Capturing the essence of India and keeping the tradition alive, the PM has gifted items that communicate the unique cultural and historical legacy of different parts of our diverse country.