Temple Cloth thumbnail 1
Temple Cloth thumbnail 2
+8
images

Temple Cloth

19th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Brahmanical temple cloth of coarse cotton fabric painted, chiefly in red and black, with Shiva subjects including Shiva enthroned in his heaven on Mount Kailash. The lowest panel, with fishing operations, possibly represents the sacred Lake Manasarovar.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Painted cotton
Brief description
Kalamkari temple cloth of painted cotton depicting Sri Subrahmanya Temple, Tiruchendur, made in the Madurai area, Tamil Nadu, 19h century
Physical description
Brahmanical temple cloth of coarse cotton fabric painted, chiefly in red and black, with Shiva subjects including Shiva enthroned in his heaven on Mount Kailash. The lowest panel, with fishing operations, possibly represents the sacred Lake Manasarovar.
Dimensions
  • Top edge width: 2715mm
  • Bottom edge width: 2677mm
  • Proper right length: 1926mm
  • Proper left length: 1892mm
  • Weighed on roller weight: 15kg
Marks and inscriptions
(Inscriptions are in Tamil)
Credit line
Purchased from Alfred Flemming
Object history
These 8 panels of Indian cotton were originally the property of General Sir Arthur Ellis (King Edward’s Equerry) to whom they were presented by a Maharajah. Sir Arthur Ellis sold them about 1878 to the carpet dealer Vincent J Robinson, who lent them in 1880 to the South Kensington Museum, where they were exhibited in the Indian Section until 1896. [Letter from A Fleming to V&A, 415M-24 Jan 1911, A Fleming Nominal File] They were then offered by Alexander Fleming to the V&A in 1911 and purchased for £5 a piece or £40 in total. [RP 1911-517M, A Fleming Nominal File]

Purchased from Alfred Fleming (Dealer), 53 Castle Road, Southsea, Portsmouth. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Museum records (Asia Department registers and/or Central Inventory) as part of a 2023 provenance research project.

RP 1911- 415M
Bibliographic reference
Kalamkari Temple Hangings Ahmedabad: Mapin Publishing, 2015
Collection
Accession number
IM.31-1911

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdJune 25, 2009
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest