Wood Inlay

Indian Wood Inlay / Marquetry is the process of decorating the surface of wood by setting in pieces of material such as ivory (traditionally), bone, plastic, shell or wood of different colours. Products with inlay include doors, jewellery boxes, plates, boxes, bowls, cigarette cases, and figures of animals, especially elephants. This craft form was brought to India from Persia in the 18th century. Mysore is home to heritage structures beautifully adorned using wood carvings with inlay work. Royal Indian processions, landscapes, pictures of Gods and Goddesses, scenes from the Mahabharata and Ramayana are depicted using shade effects in this craft. Main clusters: The craft is concentrated in Mysore and Bengaluru in Karnataka. Other places where this craft is practiced are Bijnor, Punjab, Saharanpur, and Uttar Pradesh. Artisans involved: As reported in 2005, the craft involved over 2,000 artisans in Mysore cluster61. Raw material used: Maadi, lac, champa, yellow fanas, dark red rosewood along with Plastic and bone, is used for inlay work62. Rosewood is sourced From auctions at Kushanagar, Tithimathi and Dandeli. Fibre boards are also used to cut down on the cost. Different color woods like white cedar, chill pine, rubber wood, red sandal, jackfruit wood etc. are used to add multiple colours to the art piece. A mixture of wax and charcoal is used to fill fine details.