May is Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month and with a collection like OJAC’s we can’t help but celebrate! One South Asian piece we love to share with visitors of all ages is our Pali Manuscript.

This artifact is from Myanmar, an old country with a new name. It used to be called Burma. Myanmar is known for fishing, agriculture, ancient traditions, and artisans. The country itself is almost the exact same size as the state of Texas!

A MANUscript, by definition, is something written by hand. Ours is written in an ancient Burmese language called Pali (pronounced pah-lee) native to countries like Myanmar, Thailand, and Cambodia. There are very few people left in the world who speak this language and only a few more who can translate it.

The hand-penned bamboo pages are protected by a long, exterior shell encrusted with gold, jewels, glass, and stone. Once opened, the pages extend out in an accordion fold as opposed to turning like a book. At over 200 pages and over 200 years old this artifact is a prized part of the OJAC collection.

Molly Gore Merck, Education Director