Viral: Ancient 'Panchang' Written In Devanagari Text Found At German Flea Market; Netizens React

A Reddit post about finding something surprising at a flea market in Hamburg, Germany has taken the internet by storm. It was shared by an online user who was curious to know what he had come across at the shopping spot. Sharing a few pictures of his find on the internet platform, he wrote asking Indians, "Found this on a flea market in Hamburg, Germany. Can you tell me what it is?".

R/India page shared the post forward and amplified the word of the Redditor to figure out what was found at the market. The images shared on the internet hinted it to be an ancient document written in the Devanagari script.

It appeared to be Sanskrit text inscribed on a vintage sepia-coloured paper, which resembled a panchang, a traditional Hindu calendar referred to take note of important time and events.

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The Reddit post caught the attention of Redditors and went viral. Being shared earlier this month, it has already received more than two thousand upvotes and hundreds of comments.

Netizens react to viral post

"It's a very old panchang printed in Banaras city (currently called Varanasi) in the Uttar Pradesh state of India. A panchang is a Hindu calendar and almanac," one of the netizens said reacting to the post.

"This is a Hindu calendar known as a Panchang, printed by the Bhargava Press. The press was owned and managed by Pandit Nawal Kishore Bhargava, who was one of the biggest publishers of his time," another wrote, mentioning further that the document might be "at least 150 to 180 years old, if not mistaken". "I know this because he was our ancestor, our relative from about five generations back. His descendants still live in Lucknow, but they no longer operate the press", the person pointed out.

Learning about what the man had come across during his visit to the flea market in Germany, he thanked desi netizens.

"Thanks a lot everyone! I would have never managed to find it out. One question remains, is it rare? Asking so I can preserve it accordingly, if it’s common I’ll just pin it on my wall", the Redditor stated. "Even if it is rare, it might not be valuable. Please contact an Indian antiques expert for determining genuinity and market value", people replied.