Textile thumbnail 1
Textile thumbnail 2
Not currently on display at the V&A

Textile

ca. 1850 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

One of the aims of the Great Exhibition of 1851 was to educate visitors in the principles of good design. Brocades from India were especially appreciated for not only the quality of their technique but also for the composition of their design. Following the close of the exhibition, the South Kensington Museum purchased a number of these brocades for their collection, of which this length was one. Though now greatly faded, the original flower motif would have been a striking combination of bright yellow silk and silver gilt-wrapped thread against the dark red background.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Woven silk and metal-wrapped thread
Brief description
Brocade, woven silk and metal-wrapped thread, Hyderabad, ca. 1850
Physical description
Length of red silk, brocaded with rows of stylised flowers in silver gilt-wrapped thread and green and yellow silk. Complete piece.
Dimensions
  • Length: 117.5cm
  • Width: 79cm
Object history
Exhibited at the Great Exhibition of 1851.
Association
Summary
One of the aims of the Great Exhibition of 1851 was to educate visitors in the principles of good design. Brocades from India were especially appreciated for not only the quality of their technique but also for the composition of their design. Following the close of the exhibition, the South Kensington Museum purchased a number of these brocades for their collection, of which this length was one. Though now greatly faded, the original flower motif would have been a striking combination of bright yellow silk and silver gilt-wrapped thread against the dark red background.
Bibliographic reference
Bryant, Julius and Weber, Susan, John Lockwood Kipling: Arts and Crafts in the Punjab and London Newhaven: Yale University Press, 2017 p. 526, cat. 12, fig. 1.10
Collection
Accession number
745-1852

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Record createdJune 25, 2009
Record URL
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