Overview

• Cultural Affairs Minister Ashish Shelar formally received the Maratha commander’s ‘Firangi’ sword in London on August 11 after the state won the April 29 auction
• The weapon features a European-made blade with gold inlay and a Devanagari inscription naming ‘Shrimant Raghoji Bhonsle Senasahibsubha’
• State officials completed all legal formalities abroad in coordination with an intermediary and the Indian Embassy
• Historians trace the sword’s departure from India to the East India Company’s 1817 looting of the Bhosale treasury in Nagpur
• The artefact will arrive at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport at 10 am on August 18 and proceed to PL Deshpande Kala Academy for a ‘Gad Garjana’ ceremony