Deodar wooden door detail, made in Bhera, Shahpur

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This four metre tall shuttered door from Bhera is the largest item in Glasgow Museums' World Cultures collections. It is ornately carved with low relief geometric designs in eight large and four small rectangular panels. The rectangular door is recessed in the centre of six border panels also ornately carved with mainly floral designs. The door was carved from Deodar or Indian Cedar (Cedrus Deodara), a conifer native to the Western Himalayas Bhera is situated in the Punjab Province of Pakistan. Prior to Independence Bhera was in Shahpur District, created in 1893 by the British. Bhera has always been a centre of trade, and has long been famous for its textile manufacture, metal-work, and wood carving. The high degree of craftsmanship and design of the intricate carvings made Bhera wood carvers renowned during the colonial period. Bhera carving was seen at all of the major international exhibitions of the time

The door was part of a collectiono purchased at the 1888 Glasgow International Exhibition. All of the material purchased at the 1888 Exhibition is representative of the finest quality goods made in South Asia at the time and the examples selected by the municipality represented the best craftsmanship of Kashmir, Punjab and Madras.