Sari braid with Chinai embroidery, North-West India, Gujarat - Lot 350

Sari braid with Chinai embroidery, North-West India, Gujarat, possibly Surat, circa 1900 Very long strip of purple silk woven and embroidered on one side with polychrome silk threads (beige, various shades of pink, yellow-ochre and pale blue) of a rhythmically repeated floral composition combining large rosettes and vine leaves animated by a butterfly in flight and a long-feathered pheasant-like bird. Approx. 5.5 x 730 cm Slight wear and tear, visible joints. This type of embroidery is typical of the work of Chinese embroiderers who settled in southern Gujarat from the late 19th century. This textile art, known as chanai, was particularly appreciated by Parsi women of the Zoroastrian faith for the saris they wore on ceremonial occasions. Bibliography : GILLOW, John, BARNARD, Nicholas, Textiles indiens, Thames & Hudson, Paris: 2008, p. 63.