8 Cloth of gold

©Collection Robin Wigington

The Canopy Shamiana which was suspended above Tipu's Musnud (Throne of Cushions) Layers of coarse and fine fabrics, embroidered with silver gilt thread and spangles, with overall pattern of stylised tiger stripes (bubris) 254 x 254 cm Mysore, c.1790

		shamiana was used as a canopy or awning in a place of public audience - whether the Durbar Court of an Indian potentate or the place where European civil officers, when on tour, held their courts and public proceedings. Sir Thomas Roe in 1616 refers to 'Canopies of Cloth of Gold Silke or Velvet joyned together and sustained with canes so covered'. A musnud or throne of cushions is shown in the portrait of the Mahratta ruler, Madhu Rao, by the Scottish artist, James Wales, of Aberdeen. Tipu's shamiana is decorated with a strong geometric pattern of stylised tiger stripes ('bubris') thickly embroidered in gold and silver thread. Similar embroidery appears on pieces of Tipu's cloth armour; although for practical reasons, the gold work on these is less dense and heavy.