India has a diverse and rich
textile tradition. The origin of
Indian textiles can be traced to
the Indus valley civilization.
The people of this civilization
used homespun cotton for weaving
their garments. Excavations at
Harappa and Mohen -jo-Daro, have
unearthed household items like
needles made of bone and
spindles made of wood, amply
suggesting that homespun cotton
was used to make garments.
Fragments of woven cotton have
also been found from these
sites.
can be found in the Rigveda,
which refers to weaving. The
ancient Indian epics-Ramayana
and Mahabharat also speak of a
variety of fabrics of those
times. The Ramayana refers to
the rich styles worn by the
aristocracy on one hand and
the simple clothes worn by the
commoners and ascetics. Ample
evidence on the ancient
textiles of India can also be
obtained from the various
sculptures belonging to
Mauryan and Gupta age as well
as from ancient Buddhist
scripts and murals (Ajanta
caves). Legend has it that
when Amrapali, a courtesan
from the kingdom of Vaishali
met Gautam Buddha, she wore a
richly woven semi transparent
sari, which speaks volumes of
the technical achievement of
the ancient Indian weaver.
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