Shines at the focus in the Indian community Parsi

Hidden in the alley in the southern end of the financial capital of India, Mumbai, is a museum dedicated to the followers of one of the oldest religions, Zoroastrism.

The Frammi Museum of the Addabho Alpoyel document the history and heritage of the ancient community of Parsi – a small ethnic group that is rapidly decreasing and largely residing in India.

It is now estimated that only 50,000 to 60,000 are estimated that Parsis descendants of the Persians who have fled with religious persecution of Islamic rulers centuries ago.

Despite the significant contribution to India’s economic and cultural fabric, Parsi’s community is much known for the main population and the broad world.

“The recently repaired museum hopes to get rid of this unknown, inviting people to study the history, culture and traditions of the Parsi community through the rare historical artifacts that have been exhibited,” says Kerman Fatakia, curator of the museum.

Some of them include a wedding brick, terracotta pots, coins and other items obtained from places such as Babylon, Mesopotamia, Susa and Iran, and 4000-5000 BC.

These are places where Zoroastrian Iranian kings once ruled, as well as Ahamemen, the Parfian and Sassan dynasties.

There are also artifacts from riding, a city in Central Iran, which once was a barren desert and a place where many Zoroastrians settled after escape with other regions of Iran after the Arab invasion in the 7th century BC.

One of the notable artifacts at the exhibition is the clay cylinder of the Kira Great, the King of the Persian, who was the founder of the Akhemenid Empire.

Fatahia says that the clay cylinder is also known as “Edict of Cyrus” or “Cylinder” – one of the most important discoveries of the ancient world. Inscribed in a cuneiform, it outlines the rights provided by Dius with its subject in Babylon. The United Nations is widely regarded as the first human rights charter.

Then there are maps that trace the migration routes of thousands of Iranian Zoroastrians, who fled in their country, fearing persecution and traveled to India in the 8th to the 10th centuries and again in the 19th century.

The collection also includes furniture, manuscripts, paintings and portraits of outstanding Parsis – among them Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata, the founder of the Tata iconic group, which owns such brands as Jaguar Land Rover and Tetley Tea.

Another bright section demonstrates the artifacts collected by Parsis, which became wealthy in the early 19th century tea, silk, cotton – and, in particular, opium – with China. The exhibits include Parsi’s traditional sari that affect design from China, France and other regions that are determined by these world trade ties.

The two most convincing exhibits of the museum are the replicas of the tower of silence and the Parsi Fire Temple.

The tower of silence, or Dahma, is where Parsis leaves his dead to return to nature – neither buried nor cremated. “Replica shows exactly what happens to the body as soon as it is located there,” Fatahia says, noting that the entrance to the actual towers is limited on the selected several.

The life-in size in the fire temple is equally entertaining, which offers a rare look into the sacred space, usually outside the bounds that do not have Parsis. Modeled on the outstanding temple of Mumbai, it presents holy motives inspired by ancient Persian architecture in Iran.

The Alps Museum, originally founded in 1952 in Bambey, is one of the senior institutions of the city. Recently repaired, it currently has modern displays with well -covered exhibits in glass cases. Each visitor is offered an excursion.

“This is a small museum, but it is filled with history,” Fatakia says.

“And this is a great place not only for Mumbai or India residents to learn more about Parsi’s community, but also for people from all over the world.”