Antique Hand Painted Wallhanging Pichwai Fragment Two Devotees: C19th India

A wonderful hand painted panel from India with two female gopis in traditional dress. Hand clasped in devotion they are both wearing traditional saris, with elaborate jewelry.

The detailing is quite extraordinary with jewelry, painted nails, even the eyelashes have been painted in exquisitely.

The patterning on the textiles represent hand block printed cottons, typical of saris and choli (sari blouse) from this date.

This artwork is a vintage hand dyed and painted fabric produced by Calico Mills in Ahmedabad, India, founded in 1888 by an ancestor of the Sarabhai family.

The piece reflects the Pichwai (or Pichvai) style, a traditional form of painting from Rajasthan. Pichwai literally translates to "hanging at the back" ("Pichh" meaning back, "wais" meaning hanging), as these large-scale textiles were originally created to hang behind idols of Lord Shrinathji.

It depicts figures consistent with Gopis (cowherd girls and devotees of Lord Krishna) standing beneath a stylized tree. The piece features intricate patterns typically found in 18th and 19th-century Rajasthani school art.

We run a textile conservation studio in the Cotswolds, England and have professionaly stretched and mounted this panel over a lined and interlined conservation grade board, ready for framing, or can be used unframed.

Measurements:
48cm wide x 92cm tall edges board
43cm x 81.5cm edges painting

Condition:
In excellent antique condition with losses to paint as to be expected in a textile of this antiquity.