Canopy
c.1855 (made)
c.1855 (made)
| Place of origin |
The gaddi was one of the most important textiles used in the Indian court. Often simply a textile spread on the floor with a cushion for the ruler to lean on, the gaddi constituted the seat of power and formed the focal point of a darbar or court gathering. The concept of royalty was so closely linked to this portable seat of power that the accession of a ruler was referred to as 'ascending the gaddi' , even though the actual ceremony of investiture often took place on a raised seat or platform of marble, stone or metal. Textiles made up the bulk of furnishings used at the Indian court, and were often richly decorated.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | |
| Materials and techniques | Velvet, silk and metal-wrapped thread |
| Brief description | Royal canopy (shamianah) or seat cloth (gaddi), red velvet embroidered with silver-gilt, Murshidabad, West Bengal, 1850 |
| Dimensions |
|
| Content description | A gaddi made of red velvet and embroidered with silk and metla-wrapped thread. |
| Object history | Transferred from the India Museum in 1879. India Museum Slip Book entry 8476: 'Velvet Shamianah Cloth Emb'd with Gold & Silver / Moorshedabad / 55'. 1880 Register Entry: [ROOM 9. Inside Case 66.] '07651. CARPET. Crimson velvet, embroidered with gold and silver; Moorshedabad. 8476' |
| Summary | The gaddi was one of the most important textiles used in the Indian court. Often simply a textile spread on the floor with a cushion for the ruler to lean on, the gaddi constituted the seat of power and formed the focal point of a darbar or court gathering. The concept of royalty was so closely linked to this portable seat of power that the accession of a ruler was referred to as 'ascending the gaddi' , even though the actual ceremony of investiture often took place on a raised seat or platform of marble, stone or metal. Textiles made up the bulk of furnishings used at the Indian court, and were often richly decorated. |
| Bibliographic reference | Jackson, Anna and Ji Wei (eds.) with Rosemary Crill, Ainsley M. Cameron and Nicholas Barnard, compiled by the Palace Museum, translated by Yuan Hong, Qi Yue and Liu Ran. The Splendour of India' Royal Courts : Collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. Beijing: the Forbidden City Publishing House, 2013. Text in English and Chinese. ISBN 9787513403917.
p. 48 |
| Other number | 8476 - India Museum Slip Book |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 0761(IS) |
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| Record created | June 25, 2009 |
| Record URL |
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