Part of a Skirt (Ghaghara)
Unknown Artist
early 1800s
Medium
silk satin embroidered with silk in "ari" chain stitch
Dimensions
{"overall":{"height":0.838,"width":0.359}}
Classification
Embroidery
Department
Textiles
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Accession Number
1925.794
About this artwork
Brightly colored floral vine patterns were embroidered using fine chain stitches. Since there are continuous, unbroken lines of stitches on the back side of the cloth, they were created using a hooked awl, which is a much faster process than embroidering with a straight needle. This type of embroidery is known as ari work, which flourished in Gujarat during the 19th century.