Palm leaf manuscript

This manuscript, labelled 'Native copy book from Madras 1871' has the name Mary Gell in the bottom right corner. It may possibly have belonged to Mary, the daughter of the Rev John Philip Gell whose uncle was Frederick Gell, Bishop of Madras from 1861 to 1899.

Made of palm leaf, it would have been one of many leaves forming a book from the state of Odisha (formerly known as Orissa) on the Bay of Bengal in India. The text is in the local language, Oriya, and is most likely of a religious nature relating to Hinduism, probably a tale or prayers relating to Krishna.