Dress fabric of embroidered cotton in silks, Gujarat, ca. 1710This fanciful design uses a mixture of Indian, European and Chinese elements. The end result is typical of the Chinoiserie style popular in Britain in the 18th century, and in particular reflects the popularity of the so-called 'bizarre' silks woven in France between about 1700 and 1720. These are characterised by exotic designs like this one, often incorporating imaginary architectural features or shapes, with a strong diagonal direction to the repeating pattern.
This chain-stitch embroidery is typical of the very fine work done by professional male embroiderers in Gujarat in western India, who produced the finest quality embroideries for both the Mughal court and the Western market.Dress fabric of embroidered cotton in silks in chain-stitch and with a design of flowers, fruits, birds and architectural elements. The design is repeated twice in every width.