Handcrafted in India · Heirloom brass & bronze
The Craft
Six steps, four families, one piece of brass.
Sand-casting brass is one of the oldest crafts on the subcontinent, and one of the hardest to do well. Here's what actually happens between a lump of metal and the urli on your shelf.
The Process
How a piece is made.
Step 01
The sand mold
Two halves of fine river sand are packed around a wooden master form, then carefully parted. Every piece begins in a mold no one will ever see.
Step 02
The pour
Brass or bronze is melted to roughly 1,900°F in a coal-fired crucible and poured by hand. The first thirty seconds decide whether the piece survives.
Step 03
Breaking out
After hours of cooling, the sand is broken away. The raw casting emerges rough, blackened, and recognizably itself.
Step 04
Lathe & hammer
Turned on a foot-powered lathe, then hand-hammered. The faint, irregular dimples on a finished urli aren't a mistake. They're the signature of this step.
Step 05
Polish & seal
Polished on cotton wheels to a soft golden glow, then sealed with a clear lacquer so it stays beautiful with minimal care.
Step 06
The final check
Every piece is unpacked, inspected and hand-finished one last time before it's carefully packed and sent on its way.
Made by hand. Kept for generations.
Our Story
The Gilded Haveli
Heirloom brass and bronze, sourced from family workshops across Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh, made for homes around the world.
Handcrafted in India
© 2026 The Gilded Haveli
Handcrafted in India · Shipped worldwide