Thursday, May 12, 2016

Lakhori bricks

The lakhori bricks lying near a grave, probably a very recent
burial, were a surprise. These flat kiln baked bricks
that were used in all the Nawabi buildings of Oudh,
 went out of use in the early part of the 19th century,
maybe even earlier. Is it possible that these are old bricks
that were
reused, bricks from the many building of that
period that were demolished during and after 1857!

The Nishatganj Cemetery was opened by Rev J.I.B Cockin,
Chaplin in 1887 and consecrated by the Bishop of
Calcutta, Edward Ralph, in 1889. It must have been in
use somewhat longer, because Joanna Reghelini Harcourt
was buried here in 1882. The Chiria Jheel Cemetery,
that is being used by Mother Teresa's Mission,
on Sapru Marg (formerly Olliver Road) was in
use during the 1860s and '70s.


2 comments:

  1. Hi George,
    Since you've mentioned the Chiria Jheel cemetery (never even knew it was called that), could you give us more about it? From the dates given, it seems it was closed for burial once the Nishatganj cemetery opened. Are the graves still there and are inscriptions readable? My mum and Aunty Audrey Jehangir were co-workers of the Missionaries of Charity, and I went with them to the place on Sapru Road a few times -- always wanted to explore the cemetery but never got the chance.
    By the way, we now have a grand-daughter, Kiran Isobel Leslie, born on the 4th of May -- a lovely little girl. Everyone is delighted!
    Best,
    Glenda

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  2. Hi Glenda,
    Congratulations on the arrival of your grand-daughter! It's a loverly feeling seeing a grandchild grow up. I guess you'll be spending sometime there!
    The Oliver Rd cemetery is what we called it before. I found the name in the Fibis records and now it also comes up on the net.
    I visited the cemetery last summer. The sisters/church is careful because the ASI wants possession so I had to coax the head sister to allow me to examine the graves and photograph them. To convince her I showed her all the snaps on my phone.
    Initially, I was impressed by the condition of the graves, but later I discovered that some headstones were planted at the head of other graves, which means some graves had been removed. However, the over all condition and inscriptions are good except for a few. I did count them but cannot remember the number. This cemetery was always locked before the missionaries took it over. The snaps of the graves are mixed up on my blog. I should have separated them as I've done with other cemeteries. I'll find a way of pointing you to some of them.
    Cheers
    George

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