An interesting curio

Lamps are a commonplace item in every Kerala household. Brass lamps are often the preferred choice of gifts due to their utility in religious aspects of every household. There are various types of lamps in day to day usage like the commonplace Nila Vilakku, the Lakshmi Vilakku, the Kuthu Vilakku and so on.

Last weekend a brass lamp seller passed by and presented some exotic looking lamps. Just as we were about to shoo him off as yet another salesman - he presented a unique looking artifact that could be opened like a lotus flower. I was amazed by the skill that had gone into building this piece of work and I bought one from him.Though he called it as an Aama Vilakku and also at times as a Vastu Vilakku am not sure what exactly is the terminology for this artifact.

Folks who can identify with it .. please let me know the name of this interesting artifact.