Bed Cover (Palampore)
Unknown Artist
18th century
Medium
Cotton; plain weave, mordant painted and dyed, resist-dyed
Dimensions
Textile: H. 107 in. (271.8 cm) W. 77 3/4 in. (197.5 cm) Mount: H. 117 1/2 in. (298.5 cm) W. 86 5/8 in. (220 cm) D. 2in. (5.1 cm)
Classification
Textiles-Painted and/or Printed
Department
Islamic Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Bequest of George Blumenthal and Gift of Indjoudjian Freres, by exchange, and The Friends of the Islamic Department Fund, 1982
Accession Number
1982.66
Tags
Art Historical Context
This stunning 18th-century Bed Cover, known as a *palampore*, is a masterful example of cotton textile artistry from the Islamic world, likely produced in India for export. Measuring over 8 feet tall and 6 feet wide, it designed as a luxurious bedspread, transforming ordinary sleeping spaces into vibrant displays of nature's abundance. Its floral motifs—ident in the tagged "Flowers" theme—reflect the era's fascination with botanical splendor, drawing from Indo-Islamic traditions where gardens symbolized paradise. Crafted on plain-weave cotton, the palampore employs sophisticated mordant paint...