Packaging

Most of the time when you make a major purchase in India, the negotiated price includes shipping to your overseas home. To say that the packages are well-protected is somewhat of an understatement. Here is the "unveiling" of a marble piece we purchased in Agra in September.

First, the overall box:

Note that the outer fabric layer is sewn closed.

Removing the outer fabric layer, revealed a layer of single-face corrugated board, then a wooden crate wrapped with rope:

Obviously, we had the carton upside-down. But at this point it doesn't really matter.

Just prying off the top of the crate was a challenge. Inside were lots of styrofoam bits -- pretty much what you might expect.

Digging through the loose styrofoam revealed the final package -- actually two -- one for the vase and one for its stand.

But we're not done yet. The vase itself has been wrapped with plastic cushioning, which was secured with packing tape and twine.

Unwrapping this gave the final vase!

Our purchase in the showroom in Agra.

Total time to unwrap: the better part of an hour. Total time to put the shipment together in the first place? I have no idea!