Cleveland Museum of Art

Cap

Date

1800s

Medium

Velvet embroidered with gilt-silver–wrapped silk thread (zari); silk: lining; rubies, pearls, and spinels

Culture

India

Department

Textiles

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Historically in India, head coverings were worn in outdoor and formal contexts and can signal age, allegiance, and status among Indian men and boys. A low round cap such as this was worn primarily by the well-educated aristocratic boys in the king’s circle. The painstaking process of creating the ornament involved wrapping gilt-silver wire of various dimensions around a silk thread core to create a textured appearance for the flowers and vines. The semiprecious rose-colored spinels were considered a talisman for military victory.

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