Kashmiri Shawl Fragment

This is a beautiful Kashmiri shawl fragment with Boteh design.  The boteh motif is a stylized paisley shaped cartouche.  The Boteh itself is a mass of flowers that are grounded into urns sitting on trays flanked by isolated flowers and birds beside the central design.

Kashmiri shawls combine exquisite materials, exacting technique and artistic creativity.  The wool used comes from the fine winter under hair of Asian goats.  It is spun into a very fine and thin yarn.  The weaving technique is double interlocking twill tapestry, which is labor intensive and required many craftsmen to carry out.  Because their style evolved through the years, they can be fairly accurately dated.

Kashmiri shawls were originally worn by men.  During the Napoleonic era they were imported to Europe where they became fashionable with women. They were outrageously expensive so they were eventually replaced by  jaquard loom woven shawls that were much cheaper to produce.