This beautiful alloy was polished and offered to God to make what is now called the Kannadi Bimbam, or Idol of Mirrors.
Another legend says that the chief priest noticed a crack in the crown of the local deity’s idol in Aranmula Temple. Upon conveying his message to the king, the head of the bronzesmith clan was called to the village and ordered to make a new crown within a matter of three days.
The bronzesmith clan chief was worried that making the crown would not be possible due to lack of materials and time, and conveyed his worries to his wife. And that night, when his wife was sleeping, she dreamt of a goddess who told her the precise ratio of metals which would give rise to the shiniest crown possible! She also told her to ask all the women in the community to help her procure the metals for the crown.
The next morning, the wife woke up and rushed to all the women of the community to tell them of her dream. So strong was their belief in her dream, that they contributed and sold their gold ornaments to buy appropriate amounts of copper and tin.
When the bronzesmith created the alloy and crafted the crown, it shone like a mirror! This crown was preserved in Aranmula Temple till 1942. The technique of creating the Aranmula Kannadi mirror remains a secret to this day and is known only to a few members of the Kannan community.