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Thread

ca. 1855-1879 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Hyderabad (made)
Telangana (made)

Bundle of skeins of gold-wrapped thread, joined, with 'India Office' label.

Object details

Categories
Textiles
Parasol Foundation Trust Indian Textiles Cataloguing Project
India Museum
Object type
Thread
Materials and techniques
Gold-wrapped silk thread
Silk Thread
Gold-Wrapped Thread
Gold
Drawn
Brief description
Silver-gilt wrapped silk thread, Hyderabad, Telangana, ca. 1855-1879
Physical description
Bundle of skeins of gold-wrapped thread, joined, with 'India Office' label.
Dimensions
  • Bundle length: 21cm
  • Bundle width: 3cm
Marks and inscriptions
'India Office' (Embossed label, tied around skeins. )
Gallery label
(03/10/2015-10/01/2016)
SILVER AND GOLD

For lavish decoration, embroiderers use thin strips of silver or gilded silver (zari), sequins and metal foil, often with tiny pearls. Yarn made of silk thread wrapped with silver (or gilded silver) can be woven or used for embroidery. Metal strips interwoven with silk produce luxurious shiny fabric or ribbon (gota) which can be applied onto cloth.

Silver weave
Cotton warp and silver weft
Murshidabad, West Bengal, about 1850
V&A: 0708 (IS)

Golden weave
Gilded silver warp and silk weft
Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh/Telangana, about 1855
V&A: 0695 (IS)

Panel with mankolam (paisley) pattern
Silk, metal-wrapped thread, sequins, pearls, silver strips
Triplicane, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, 1855–79
V&A: 6502 (IS)

Silver and gilded silver embellishments
Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh/Telangana, and Ahmedabad, Gujarat, about 1855
V&A: 6293; 6345; 6346; 6354; 05954:1 to 3; 05939:1, 2 (IS)
Object history
Transferred from India Museum 1879.
Historical context
Intended for use in embellishments for textiles.
Bibliographic reference
Miller, Lesley Ellis, and Ana Cabrera Lafuente, with Claire Allen-Johnstone, eds. Silk: Fibre, Fabric and Fashion. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum, 2021. ISBN 978-0-500-48065-6. This object features in the publication Silk: Fibre, Fabric and Fashion (2021)
Collection
South & South East Asia Collection
Accession number
6354(IS)

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Record createdJune 25, 2009
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O480458/thread-unknown/
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