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Illustration from ‘Asian Carpets: XVI and XVII Century Designs From The Jaipur Palaces’

Thomas H Hendley1905

Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum

Dr. Bhau Daji Lad Mumbai City Museum
Mumbai, India

William Griggs, the English inventor of the chromolithographic process, published ‘Asian Carpets’ in 1905, showcasing 16th and 17th century designs from the Jaipur Palaces. Vivid accounts by Sir George Birdwood emphasised the need to critically document the history of Oriental Carpets. The publication highlights the use of high quality wool, from sheep reared in Rajputana and South Punjab, and trade dictation. It presents a wide range of designs from contemporary times. The design iconography from the plate resembles the motifs seen on the carpet from Yerwada Jail, Pune in the Museum's collection.

Indian pile carpets were prized for their skill and intricate traditional designs that appealed to the Western imagination of ‘oriental splendour’. There was a growing demand for Indian pile carpets in European markets by the mid-nineteenth century, which were prominently displayed at the international exhibitions. Carpet weaving was labour intensive and time consuming, but had a high-profit yield. It was, therefore, one of the handicraft industries taken up for revival by the British in colonial India.

Carpet workshops had been initiated by the colonial government in jails across India including Jaipur, Amritsar, Bikaner, Lahore and Agra. The prison workshops were a Government initiative to meet the growing prison costs and to manage and discipline the prisoners. The carpets woven in jails were known as ‘prison’ or ‘jail’ carpets and were much sought-after by museums and private collectors.

Details

  • Title: Illustration from ‘Asian Carpets: XVI and XVII Century Designs From The Jaipur Palaces’
  • Creator: Thomas H Hendley
  • Date Created: 1905
  • Location: From ‘Asian Carpets: XVI and XVII Century Designs, From The Jaipur Palaces’, by Thomas H Hendley, 1905.
  • Type: chromolithograph
  • Material: chromolithograph

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