Ancient Designs
In ancient times, artists came up with the designs and patterns, then workmen with immense skills crafted them into temples and objects. Before that, the master craftsman would outline details of shape, colour and proportion of the design. Then each specialist craftsman would be assigned his own specialised part of the design. These ideas of designs were under the huge influence of local and Persian cultures. And this can be reflected in many Indian carpets, textiles and stone inlays.
Origin of handicrafts tools
The beginning of the historic handicraft originated from when the Stone Age Man started using hammer stones to make smaller tools. Today, tools used by craftsmen are the same as those used in ancient India. The skills were passed on from generations to generations except that the purpose of such craftsmanship in the past was solely for survival.
Textiles
Indian Textiles
The skill of weaving has at least 5000 years of history in India. In fact, Indians started their textile exports as early as the second century B.C. Evidence of this can be found in the tombs of Fostat in Egypt. In the 13th century, textiles were used to barter fro herbs and spices in the western countries. Before machines were introduced, khadi, a kind of hand-woven and hand-spun fabric was very popular.
Indian Carpets
The history of Indian carpets can be traced back to 500 B.C. But it started to gain its popularity since 16th century in the reign of Akbar when he led some carpet weavers from Persia to India. At that time, wool and silk were the two materials used and floral, animals and geometric patterns were common. During Jahangir's reign (1556-1605), silk and pashima were used so that more knots could be woven making it more smooth and designs were more naturalistic. During Shahjahan's reign (1628-1658), an even higher quality of carpets was reached allowing 2000 knots per inch giving the carpet a velvet texture. Now flowers were the mainstream design. However, from 1658 onwards, all crafts in India faced a crisis except carpet craft. Due to its religious and daily use in India, this is the only craft survived the difficult times.
This article was produced by Asia Dragon. Visit us at www.asiadragon.co.uk where you will find authentic Oriental furniture, including Indian furniture, Chinese furniture plus Oriental rugs, soft furnishings and home décor ideas. Our Asian furniture and home furnishings are available in both traditional & contemporary styles. We also feature calligraphy, Chinese art and ornaments, Chinese dresses, fashion accessories, and Japanese kimonos.
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