SOLD

Finest Pashmina
c 1820

Beautiful quality pashmina. The embroidered corners are very finely worked and most people would think they were woven. The shawl seems to be woven in one piece, the fringing integral to the shawl. I cannot see any seams.

It has been really difficult to take photos of this shawl which is mainly blue and red with touches of yellow and green. In our photos the blue and red tend to merge to produce purple! The colouring in the second photo is the most accurate.

Cataloguing

ivory shawl, the semi translucent centre woven in a twill tapestry weave, the spandrels beautifully embroidered in pashmina wools with a boteh filled and surrounded by foliage, a signature in ivory and red silks close to one boteh, a border filled with slanting pines to four sides of the shawl, the ends with a deep border of eight upright botehs filled with five starred flowers, all in indigo and madder with touches of ochre and pale blue green, fringing to each end, each border length woven with double pale green lines, 10 ft; 3.5 m x 4ft 4 in; 1.33 m wide

Condition

There is one small hole to the border. This could easily be conserved if you wished, although not necessary. One end has two slits, one 1/2 in the other 3/4 in. Again these would be easy to conserve and I can always arrange for this to be done. The pashmina centre has that lovely sheen which the Kashmiris created by rubbing the shawl with pebbles. One end has a very small hole. The centre has a small group of holes. The further end has a few holes and one tear 1 1/2 x 3/4 in which has been supported. This could be redone rather better. Near this area there are two small areas of slight wear (near the signatures)