Pashmina The Kashmir Shawl and Beyond

by Rizvi, Janet; Ahmed, Monisha

• ISBN13: 9789383243211
• ISBN10: 938324321X
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2017-11-30
• Publisher: Marg Pubns

Summary

• Lavishly illustrated, the book offers a comprehensive view of pashmina, one of the most exqusite textiles ever woven

• Constructs a complete narrative of the textile, from the raw material to the finished product

• Covers the history for the pashmina industry from the nomadic tribes to the fashion industry

The classic Kashmir shawl is among the most exquisite textiles ever woven, the product of consummate skill and artistry applied to one of the world's most delicate fibers. This authoritative study introduces the Kashmir shawl as a cultural artifact with a known history spanning four centuries. Lavishly illustrated and accessibly written, the revised edition of this book has much to offer textile scholars, and those interested in the history of Kashmir.

Contents: Preface and Acknowledgements; Maps; Introduction: A Felicitous Conjunction. PART I: THE FIBRE - Chapter 1: Pashm and Other Animal Fibres; Chapter 2: Changra and Changpa: The Goats and Their Herders - Monisha Ahmed; Chapter 3: From Changthang to Srinagar: The Pashm Trade. PART 2: THE TEXTILE - Chapter 4: Spinners, Weavers, and Needleworkers; Chapter 5: Design and Designers. PART 3: THE HISTORY - Chapter 6: Early History: Conjecture and Speculation; Chapter 7: The Mughal Period; Chapter 8: The Iran Connection: The Termeh; Chapter 9: The Business in the 19th Century. PART 4: BY LAND AND SEA - Chapter 10: The Kashmir Shawl in India; Chapter 11: The Kashmir Shawl in Iran, West Asia, and Russia; Chapter 12: Shawls in the West. PART 5: CASHMERE AND KASHMIR - Chapter 13: Beyond the Shawl: Pashmina Becomes Cashmere; Chapter 14: Meanwhile, Back in the Valley. Appendix I Update 2008-17; Appendix II Myths, Misconceptions, and Oddities; Appendix III Terminology and Glossary; Notes and References; Bibliography; Picture Credits; Index.

Author Biography

Janet Rizvi's book Ladakh, Crossroads of High Asia (Oxford University Press, Delhi, 3rd edn. 2012) has been continuously in print for nearly 35 years. She is also author of the highly praised Trans-Himalayan Caravans: Merchant Princes and Peasant Traders in Ladakh (Oxford University Press, Delhi, 1999). As well as writing the chapter 'Woven Textiles' in The Crafts of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh (ed. Jaya Jaitley, Mapin, Ahmedabad, 1989), she has contributed articles on the Kashmir shawl to several authoritative reference works: The Encyclopedia of Clothing and Fashion (Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 2004), The Encyclopedia of India (Charles Scribner's Sons, New York, 2006), and The Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion (Berg Publishers, Oxford, 2010). She wrote the chapter 'The Asian Trade in Kashmir Shawls' in Textiles from India, The Global Trade (ed. Rosemary Crill, Seagull, Kolkata, 2005). Monisha Ahmed is an independent researcher who has been visiting and writing about Ladakh since 1987. Many of those years have been spent living among the nomadic herdspeople of Changthang, Ladakh's high-altitude plateaux, researching their life with special reference to their textiles and trade in pashmina. This was first for her doctoral degree from Oxford University which later developed into the book Living Fabric - Weaving Among the Nomads of Ladakh Himalaya (Orchid Press, Bangkok, 2002), and received the Textile Society of America's R.L. Shep award in 2003 for best book in the field of ethnic textile studies. Since then she has co-edited Ladakh - Culture at the Crossroads (Marg Publications, Mumbai, 2005), and published several articles on textile arts of Ladakh. Formerly Associate Editor of Marg, she is co-founder and Executive Director of the Ladakh Arts and Media Organisation (LAMO), Leh.