What's inside Ratna Bhandar? Secret treasury of Jagannath temple opened after 46 years

New special (brass) box being carried for reopening of the temple's 'Ratna Bhandar' after 46 years, in Puri (PTI)

After 46 long years, Ratna Bhandar - the famed treasury of the 12th-century Jagannath temple in Odisha's Puri - was re-opened on Sunday to evaluate the inventory of valuables stored inside it as well as the repair of the structure.

An 11-member committee formed by the Odisha government re-opened the treasury around 1.28pm on Sunday, which was the auspicious moment decided at a meeting in the morning. They came out of the Ratna Bhandar around 5.20 pm.

Among the 11 people present when the treasury was reopened were former Orissa HC judge Biswanath Rath, Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) chief administrator Arabinda Padhee, ASI Superintendent DB Gadanayak and a representative of Puri's titular king 'Gajapati Maharaja', officials said.

Also among them were four servitors, Patjoshi Mohapatra, Bhandar Mekap, Chadhaukarana and Deulikaran, who took care of the rituals.

The reopening of the Ratna Bhandar was a major flashpoint between BJP and BJD in the recent elections. BJP leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra modi, attacked the then-ruling BJD over the missing keys to the treasury and had vowed that it would make efforts to reopen the treasury if it won the polls.

What's inside Ratna Bhandar?

The revered treasury houses the precious ornaments of the deities of the temple - Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Goddess Subhadra - given by devotees and former kings over centuries. It is divided into two - the outer chamber (Bahara Bhandar) and the inner chamber (Bhitara Bhandar).

The collection includes the rarest of jewellery, including diamonds, gold and precious stones. Here's a look:

* As per the last inventory conducted in 1978, the treasury has a treasure trove of 454 types of gold ornaments weighing 12,883 ‘bhari’ and 293 types of silver ornaments weighing 22,153 ‘bhari’.

* An article in the Odisha Magazine said that King Anangabhima Dev had donated 2.5 lakh madhas of gold to prepare jewellery for the Almighty.

* According to the Odisha Review magazine article from 2022, the ‘Bhitara Bhandar’ contains 180 types of ornaments, including 74 varieties of pure gold ornaments, some weighing more than 1.2 kg.

* Besides this, it houses plates made of gold, diamond, corals and pearls, the report said. It also has over 140 silver jewellery pieces.

* In 1805, then Puri Collector Charles Grome made a list of ornaments stored in the inner chamber that included 1,333 items.

* Unverified rumours claimed that the bhandar has chambers holding 128 gold coins, 1,297 silver coins, 106 copper coins and 24 ancient gold coins.

* The inner chamber was also opened in 1985 for gold-repair work but an inventory was not done then.

The snake myth

According to a report in The Times of India, the temple committee was searching for a skilled snake charmer amid concerns about potential reptile threats ahead of the opening.

However, Odisha high court judge Biswanath Rath, after visiting the chamber, quashed these concerns amd all other myths surrounding the Ratna Bhandar.

He further said that after shifting the ornaments from the outer chamber, the temporary strong room has been locked and the keys have been given to three authorised persons as daily use ornaments are also there.

New locks were used to secure the doors of the inner chamber and the keys were handed over to the Puri collector, he said, adding that the entire process was videographed.

Case of 'missing' keys

Even in 2018, an attempt was made to reopen the Ratna Bhandar on the direction of the high court but the original keys could not be found, and eventually, the plan was abandoned.

Meanwhile, two duplicate keys to the inner chamber were also found.

This triggered public outrage and political attacks, prompting then CM Patnaik to form a panel to inquire into the missing keys.

The commission sent its report to the state government in November 2018 but the findings were never made public.