Entering Crawford

I've said this before in some other blogs, and possibly to a few friends.that one of the things I love about photo blogging is that, when I write about some of the places that I have photographed, I read up on them. And, I discover things, or hidden facts, that are most interesting. Well, at least some of the time.

For instance, the friezes at the entrance to Crawford Market.

It does appear that these friezes were designed by Lockwood Kipling, who was the father of Rudyard Kipling. So, both the Kiplings seem to have profited immensely by their association with India, and both seem to have enjoyed their association with India.

The son, as is sometimes ( always??) the case, has become much more famous than the father. Always? Well, a man is always the son of his father, and sometimes more famous!

In this case, the frieze depicts Indian farmers. However, if you look closely at the design of the frieze, and some of the figures, you may find something interesting.

The gentleman on the left looks very much like like a merchant, or a trader. Or, is he a money lender? I would need to teleport myself down to 1869 to ask Lockwood to ask him what his intention was.

Indian farmers have, traditionally, been quite poor. We have a huge population, and down the years, plots of land have been divided amongst the sons, progressively becoming smaller and smaller.

And, as they become smaller and smaller, they become more and more unproductive. And, with the dependence on the monsoon rains, the possibility of a lousy crop was always pretty high.

Which, leads to the need for money. Money leads to the moneylender, which leads to debt. Considering the small size of the plots, I doubt that the farmers could charge decent prices.

And so, the path leads to the moneylender, who gives out loans at extremely high rates of interest. Anyone who cribs about the high rates of interest charged by credit card companies would not have wanted to be an Indian farmer. The debts would normally be paid over generations, leading to cycles of dependence and exhortation.

Hindi movies, especially those made in the years leading up to the early 1970's always depicted the villager as the honest bloke who was exploited by the cruel moneylender, and the cruel, stupid city merchant. And so, the truth becomes stereo-typed. That is the life, and the circle of life!

Well, there is so much that can be read in the frieze designed by Lockwood Kipling. It's a pity very few folk look at the frieze at all. 

Comments

[jeff]

guess you are right...it is always great to be able to read and at the same time see the photos of that place...
great way of presenting things...

[Jen Pedler]

Yes,quite agree with your comment about finding out more about places you've photographed when you start writing about them. That's what I'm finding on our current circular walk around London and I'm doing a lot of writing but haven't got round to putting it in a blog yet.
Thanks for dropping by my fp. Although there will still be leaves on the trees, the fresh spring green will have faded in London by July, especially if we have a hot summer. Business or pleasure? If it's only a day perhaps the former. If you need a guide, let me know.
Cheers.