The Great Exhibition was held in 1851. A special Crystal Palace was created in London's Hyde Park. It was sponsored by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert and the theme was 'Works of Industry of all Nations'. India was gifted 30,000 sq.ft of exhibition space. One of the exhibits was 
The Ivory Throne gifted to the Queen by the Raja of Travancore to demonstrate the skills of his craftsmen. The densely-carved elephant-ivory plaques incorporate Indian and European motifs, and the conch-shell emblem of Travancore forms the cresting. Another exhibit was
The howdah presented to Queen by the Nawab Nazim of Bengal. The stuffed elephant was on loan from Saffron Walden Museum in Essex. In the background, you can also see the embroidered muslin from Dhaka! However, the exhibit which was the center of attraction was
The Kohinoor surrendered by the 10-year-old Maharaja Duleep Singh, under the Treaty of Lahore (1849). Its iron safe, designed by Jeremiah Chubb, acted as both a night-time receptacle and an anti-theft device: if the glass was touched, the diamond would drop into the safe below.
The Exhibition was attended by more than 6 million people and many of the ideas about India, which became part of everyday discourse, had their beginnings here - be it the image of an ‘exotic’ India, the land of unbelievably rich Maharajas, opulent fabrics and great jewels.
