Textile Item Number: 1046/4 from the MOA: University of British Columbia
Description
Rectangular, multi-coloured silk ikat bed cover or wall hanging, backed with machine printed, floral cotton textile. On the ikat side are 25 narrow vertical stripes of seven-colour warp-face ikat designs, separated by narrower, unpatterned green, yellow, or red-purple stripes. The weft is bright pink, giving the piece an over-all rosy appearance. The machine printed cotton backing textile is predominantly red, with brown, tan and white details, and the piece is bound on all four edges with bias cut green silk textile. Several lengths of ikat textile were pieced together to achieve the desired width.
History Of Use
May have been used as a bed cover (adiol) for a bride and groom, or could also have been used as a decorative wall hanging (pardah), curtain, room divider, etc. The printed cotton textile used to back this piece was likely produced in Russia, where there was a flourishing industry that produced printed textiles for the Central Asian market.
Narrative
According to Clarke Abbott of Tradewind Antiques, the person who collected this piece lived in Kabul in the early 1960s, doing ambassadorial work. He traveled widely throughout the area. He was killed in an automobile accident there, and no further information is available about him or his collection. The piece was subsequently acquired by Tradewind Antiques in Vancouver at an unknown date, and the Museum of Anthropology purchased it in 1984, when the business was liquidating its stock.
Specific Techniques
Ikat production is a specialized, urban activity that involves the expertise of many separate groups of artisans who tie, dye and weave the textiles. Specialization for each of these activities is assigned to specific ethnic groups and follows strict tradition. The white line on one of the panels results from the positioning of the framework on which the weft yarns are wound during the dyeing process. Needle holes in the silk textile indicate that it may have been reworked from a previous form. The patterns used in ikat textiles vary greatly in response to changes in fashion and style.
Item History
- Made in Uzbekistan ? or Afghanistan ? between 1920 and 1930
- Owned by Tradewind Antiques before July 12, 1985
- Received from Museum of Anthropology Shop Volunteers (Funding source) and Tradewind Antiques (Seller) on July 12, 1985
What
- Name
- Textile
- Identification Number
- 1046/4
- Type of Item
- textile
- Material
- cotton fibre, silk fibre and dye
- Manufacturing Technique
- warp-face ikat, machine printed and sewn
- Overall
- height 239.8 cm, width 130.5 cm
Who
- Culture
- Uzbek
- Previous Owner
- Tradewind Antiques
- Received from
- Museum of Anthropology Shop Volunteers (Funding source) and Tradewind Antiques (Seller)
Where
- Holding Institution
- MOA: University of British Columbia
- Made in
- Uzbekistan ? or Afghanistan ?
When
- Creation Date
- between 1920 and 1930
- Ownership Date
- before July 12, 1985
- Acquisition Date
- on July 12, 1985
Other
- Item Classes
- textiles
- Condition
- good
- Accession Number
- 1046/0004