COSTUMES
India: Orissa, Sambalpur, Bargarh-Sonepur area [?]
Bhulia (Meher) group [?]
Sari (woman's)
1956
Plain weave; Supplementary warp pattern weave; Supplementary weft patterning; Discontinuous weft; Resist dyed, warp ikat; Resist dyed, weft ikat
Cotton; Vegetable dye (indigo); Vegetable dye (Lodha tree bark)
4 yds. 1/2 in. x 1 yd. 1 1/4 in. (3.67 m x 95 cm)
Elizabeth Bayley Willis Collection, gift of Virginia and Prentice Bloedel
TC 58.1-401

The plain field domuha saris are for every day wear. The equal width pallu on either end of the sari is a striking characteristic of Sambalpur saris. Woven into each corner of the field in this sari is a kumbha or temple motif, a recurrent design element throughout India. The ten stripes of supplementary warp patterning, called dasphulia, form the borders which frame the field along with the double pallu. -- Label copy for Courtyard, Bazaar, Temple: Traditions of Textile Expression in India, Bellevue Art Museum, June 12, 1982 to July 25, 1982.