Not currently on display at the V&A

Mattress Cover

early 20th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Mattress cover (draniyo) of loosely woven white or unbleached cotton, with design embroidered and applied in coloured cottons and pieces of cloth with mirrors inset, laid out as follows: a central square motif containing one large and four small windmills/whirligigs/stylised flowerheads, the square outlined with two different coloured binding strips, beyond which a third strip cut into a triangular edging. Four smaller squares are arranged at roughly equal intervals on the cloth, two at the top and two at the bottom, on either side of a flowering tree which grows from a diamond-shaped compartment containing a windmill or stylised flowerhead. In the spaces between these designs are further motifs, human and animal, e.g., woman churning butter, a baby in a swinging cot, people riding camels and elephants, various quadruped, peacocks, etc. Around the edge of the cloth is a series of borders, embroidered and appliqué, the longest and most conspicuous being of dark blue cotton with a repeating pattern of large stylised rosettes, each with a mirror inset in the centre. The cloth is edged with a series of coloured binding strips, and backed with coarse white and unbleached cotton.

The colours used in the embroidery and appliqué are: two reds, two blues, green, yellow orange and ecru or biscuit. The predominant colours are scarlet and indigo on a cream ground. The main embroidery stitches used are: interlaced stitch, double chain stitch, button-hole stitch, and outline stitch.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Woven cotton with appliqué and embroidered decoration
Brief description
Mattress cover (draniyo), woven cotton with appliqué and embroidered decoration, from Kutch, Gujarat, India, early 20th century
Physical description
Mattress cover (draniyo) of loosely woven white or unbleached cotton, with design embroidered and applied in coloured cottons and pieces of cloth with mirrors inset, laid out as follows: a central square motif containing one large and four small windmills/whirligigs/stylised flowerheads, the square outlined with two different coloured binding strips, beyond which a third strip cut into a triangular edging. Four smaller squares are arranged at roughly equal intervals on the cloth, two at the top and two at the bottom, on either side of a flowering tree which grows from a diamond-shaped compartment containing a windmill or stylised flowerhead. In the spaces between these designs are further motifs, human and animal, e.g., woman churning butter, a baby in a swinging cot, people riding camels and elephants, various quadruped, peacocks, etc. Around the edge of the cloth is a series of borders, embroidered and appliqué, the longest and most conspicuous being of dark blue cotton with a repeating pattern of large stylised rosettes, each with a mirror inset in the centre. The cloth is edged with a series of coloured binding strips, and backed with coarse white and unbleached cotton.

The colours used in the embroidery and appliqué are: two reds, two blues, green, yellow orange and ecru or biscuit. The predominant colours are scarlet and indigo on a cream ground. The main embroidery stitches used are: interlaced stitch, double chain stitch, button-hole stitch, and outline stitch.
Dimensions
  • Length: 169cm
  • Width: 101cm
Object history
Transferred from the Circulation department. These objects (IS.6-1977 to IS.41-1977) were in Circulation's travelling exhibition, "The Arts of Village India". They formerly bore the numbers C24959 to C24994. C24984, a cradle-cloth, is missing-stolen at Birkenhead in 1973. (Registered File number 1976/616)

Formerly numbered C24989.
Historical context
Used by memebers of the Rabari cowherd community to hang in front of a stack of mattresses during the day.
Production
From Kutch, Gujarat.
Subjects depicted
Collection
Accession number
IS.36-1977

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Record createdJune 25, 2009
Record URL
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