Kashmir shawls were objects of desire in courtly circles across India, Iran, Africa and Europe, worn by both men and women. For centuries, they represented the ultimate luxury, inspiring artistic exchange and contributing to the development of global textile industries from the 16th to the 19th century.
The construction of a single shawl required months of coordinated labour involving expert designers, dyers and weavers. The examples on display were woven from pashm, the exceptionally fine and resilient underhair of Himalayan goats, with each motif built one thread at a time using the intricate kani technique.
By the 19th century, Kashmir shawls were in great demand in Britain and Napoleonic France, thanks in part to the Empress Josephine, a celebrated fashion icon and prominent patron of the shawl. In Lyon, Joseph-Marie Jacquard developed a programmable loom that enabled Kashmir-style shawls to be produced mechanically in Europe, marking a pivotal moment in the history of industrial textile technology.
