Q. What is common to the Chartered Bank Building, Royal Insurance Building and Outram Ghat?
A. Edward Thornton was the architect of the three edifices. Thorton also designed Calcutta Club.
Q. Where do we find the first mention of Kantha — the craft of stitching recycled cloths and saris into quilts — in literature?
A. In the 16th-century biographical text, Sri Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita, by poet Krishnadasa Kaviraja.
Stories of Bengal’s rich and often little-known heritage came alive through a series of questions at a heritage quiz held recently.
A regular feature on the city’s school circuit, the annual quiz expanded its reach this year to social clubs. Hosted by Calcutta Club, the event on June 12 saw participation from members of several clubs across the city.
Sangeeta Dudhoria, one of the founder trustees of the Calcutta Heritage Collective (CHC), said: “We have been organising this quiz involving schools for eight years. Our objective is to create awareness about the heritage of our city and state through talks, quiz and other means.”
The preliminary round at Calcutta Club had sixteen teams responding to twenty questions. The top six teams made it to the finals.
The Calcutta Cricket and Football Club (CC&FC) emerged as winners, and Calcutta Club A was the runner-up.
“Calcutta Club invited us to organise the quiz on their premises. Adults showing interest in an event that had for many years been restricted to schools and having so many participants inspires hope,” said Oindrilla Dutt, a member of the collective who conducted the quiz with Supriya Newar.
The finals featured six rounds and one live round, putting contestants’ taste buds to the test. Participants were asked to sample a piece of sarbhaja on stage and then answer two questions: identify the sweet and name its place of origin.
Sarbhaja, a traditional Bengali delicacy, originated in Krishnanagar in Nadia district, said Dutt.
The live round also had women modelling in Baluchari saris and wearing Swarnachur, a piece of jewellery. The question for the male finalists was to identify the sari and the piece of jewellery.
The quiz also involved the audience, with prizes for those who answered questions correctly. Titled Echoes from the Past, the event drew an audience of nearly 200 people.
Questions that stumped all participating teams were thrown open to the audience, giving spectators a chance to test their knowledge of Bengal’s heritage.
“It was really wonderful to see so many clubs participating, and we had about 16 entries with 3 members per team. Calcutta Heritage Collective was the knowledge partner,” said Deborshi Sadhan Bose of Calcutta Club.
Club president Kasturi Raha called it “a learning experience”.