Henry Heras
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Henry Heras (11 September 1888,
.Education
Enric Heras de Sicars (later in India he anglicised his Christian name to Henry) was the heir of a well-off rural household from the village of
Historian in India
On arrival in
He founded the Indian Historical Research Institute (1926), which trained numerous historians and Indologists, including Dr. George M. Moraes, Dr. Liladhar B. Keny, Dr. B. A. Saletore and others. The institute was later renamed the Heras Institute of Indian History and Culture. The Heras Memorial Lecture is held annually at the institute.[1]
Proto-historian and archeologist
From 1935 on he turned his attention to the newly excavated archeological sites of
Other activities and achievements
Heras was also the founder of the Bombay Historical Society and was also actively involved in the Indian Historical Records Commission, Indian History Congress and the International Congress of Historical Sciences. Being totally identified with the culture of the country he chose to become an Indian citizen as soon as possible after the independence of 1947. Among his many students is Dr.
The same admiration for Indian culture led him to encourage Christian artists to adopt Indian forms of art and symbols in order to express Christian themes. In painting he enthused over Angelo Fonseca, Olimpio Coleto Rodrigues, et al. In architecture he was personally involved in drawing up the plans of the cathedral of Belgaum. He conducted an exhibition on Indian Christian art for the Holy Year of 1950 in Rome. He is acknowledged to be the "Father of Christian Indian Art".
Selected works
- The Writing of History, Madras, 1926.
- The Aravidu Dynasty of Vijayanagara, Madras, 1927.
- Beginning of Vijayanagara History, Bombay, 1929.
- The Conversion Policy of the Jesuits in India, Bombay, 1933.
- Studies in Pallava History, Madras, 1933.
- Studies in Proto-Indo-Mediterranean Culture, 1955.
Footnotes
- ^ British Museum Director to Inaugurate ‘Conservation Centre’ at St. Xavier’s, xaviers.edu. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
- ^ https://archive.org/details/dli.ernet.51812/mode/2up
- A. L. Basham, Indica, 1978, 2(1).
Bibliography
- Correia-Afonso, J. (ed). Henry Heras, the Scholar and his Work, Bombay, 1976.
- Balaguer, Melchior. Fr Henry Heras (1888–1955), in Jesuits in India: in Historical Perspective, Macao, 1992, pp. 297–300.