The Coppersmiths of Moradabad

Moradabad, in Uttar Pradesh, has been a center of metalwork for centuries, historically known for brass and increasingly for copper export work. Entire neighborhoods are organized around workshops passed down through families — a smith's son learns the hammer before he learns much else.

The hand-hammered texture on a piece like The Ritual Bottle isn't decorative in the way a stamped pattern would be. It's the direct record of a smith working a copper sheet into shape, blow by blow, over the shape of a wooden or steel form called a 'saandaasi.' No two pieces come out quite the same, because no two hands hit in exactly the same place twice.

We work directly with small workshops in this region rather than large factory exporters, which means smaller batches and occasional waits — a tradeoff we think is worth it.