Hand embroidered Sash, Bokani, Gujarat 2299

Hand embroidered Sash, Bokani, Gujarat

Early 20th century

Dimensions – 132 X 20 CM

‘Bokani’ is a sash worn over the headgear covering the ears during sword dances performed during festivals. This sash is hand embroidered using Soof embroidery. Soof is hand embroidery of mysterious origin practiced by women of the Sodha Rajput and Meghwal communities who migrated from Sindh, present-day Pakistan.

Soof artisans work on the reverse of the cloth. Each artisan imagines her whole design first in her mind, and works it out geometrically-in reverse. Counting warp and weft threads, they take stitches along to create exactly angular patterns.