Sample Piece of Chikan Work in One Cotton

National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy

Title : Sample Piece of Chikan Work in One Cotton

Accession No : 92/7805 (3)

Patti-chikan Embroidery.


Source

  • RepositoryNational Crafts Museum and Hastkala Academy
  • CollectionMuseum Collection

Provenance

  • CountryIndia
  • StateUttar Pradesh
  • DistrictLucknow

Condition

  • ConditionGood
  • Action NoteCNR

Dimensions

  • Measurement (CMS)28.5x8cms.

Significance

  • ReligiousChikankari’s origin has multiple versions, and gender difference in perception to quality of work have also played an important part. One speaks about a traveler taught Chikankari to a peasant in return of water to drink. The feminine version talks about empress Nur Jahan’s contribution for commissioning delicate motifs and elements found on the Isfahan Mosque to be translated onto stitchery. Another story credits an anonymous princess from Murshidabad for embroidering delicate muslin to attract the attention of the Nawab and other ladies followed the same path to master the art of embroidery to get the attention of Nawab.
  • Socio economicChikan work or ChikanKari (kari meaning work in Hindi) is thought to have originated in Bengal and to have been practiced in Dacca and Kolkata. Jamdani was previously confined to Dacca, but from 1850 onwards, very fine white-on-white Jamdani was produced near Tanda, Faizabad which is said to have resulted in the beginning of Lucknow chikan-kari industry. Once a symbol of sophistication, mill-made fabrics, cotton polyester mixtures and thin silk have resulted in quality of chikan work to suffer a catastrophic decline. Loss of patronage resulted in the industry becoming oriented towards mass market and loss of skilled embroiders due to cheap imitation of this rich textile exported abroad and distributed domestically. In December 2008, the Geographical Indication Registry (GIR) granted chikankari Geographical Indication (GI) designation, recognizing Lucknow as an exclusive centre for the textile.
  • ArtisticHailing from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, chikankari, or chikan work, is a distinctive form of hand embroidery. It entails intricate needlework employing a range of stitches, traditionally executed with white thread on white fabric. The intricately embroidered chikankari patch showcases murri-phanda embroidery along with jali, pechni and kil. Murri-Phanda typically refers to a category of chikan embroidery characterized by embossed or raised stitches, such as murri and phanda. However, it can also describe embroidery work that incorporates various textural effects achieved through the combination of different stitches

Description

  • DescriptionPatti-chikan Embroidery.
  • Inscription/Markings No
  • Reference"Chikankari; A lucknawi Tradition , Paola Manfredi pg. 26 27,119,125,207 Indian textiles; John Gillow , pg 160,161 "
  • KeywordChikankari, white on white