The Nachiarkoil lamp, also called Annam lamp or Nachiarkoil Kuthuvilakku, is an ornamental brass lamp made of series of diyas, a handicraft product which is exclusively made by Pather (Kammalar) community in Nachiyar Koil town in Tamil Nadu, India. The lamp, which is hollow cast, is made in different sizes and consists of four parts which are screwed together. The central pillar that crowns at the apex is called the "Prabhai"; it is generally in the form of a hamsa or swan. The lamp may also be made in the form of a female figurine holding a shallow bowl in a standing posture, or in the form of branches of a tree; the bowl of these lamps has five V-shaped spouts which hold cotton wicks, and is filled with oil for lighting. The ornamental lamps are widely used in temples in South India. This product has been registered for protection under the Geographical indication of the Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement. On 8 February 2010 it was registered as "Nachiarkoil Kuthuvilakku (lamp)" under the Geographical Indications Act 1999 of the Government of India, with registration confirmed by the Controller General of Patents Designs and Trademarks under Class – 6 – Brass Lamps and related goods vide application number 196. A two-year training programme for student craftsmen is organised by the Tamil Nadu Handicrafts Development Corporation Ltd, known as Poompuhar, in Nachiarkoil. Location Nachiarkoil Lamp is made in Nachiarkoil, a town in Kumbakonam taluk in the Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu. The town is about southeast of Kumbakonam on the Kumbakonam – Tiruvarur main road. The lamps are made by resident artisans called Pathers. History The lamps were originally made in the Nachiarkoil by the particular community known as Pathers, who were practising this art form made of brass and bell metal originally in Nagercoil in the erstwhile Travancore-Cochin State, now Kerala. Since they could not pursue their livelihood in Nagerkoil with this craft, five families of Pathers migrated initially to Kumbakonam and then to Nachiarkoil in 1857. At Kumbakonam they had noted the local artisans manufacturing this product with brass sheets. As the Pathers were not aware of using sheets to manufacture handicrafts, they adopted it to their own craftsmanship in which they were proficient, of using a moulding brass and bell-metal technique using a particular type of sand. They settled at Nachiarkoil, as they found the light