India, Gujarat, late 1800s
Patola (Double Ikat) Sari
Silk warp and weft-dyed plain weave
149 x 52 inches
Gift of The Reverend and Mrs. Van S. Merle-Smith, Jr., Mr. and Mrs. Fowler Merle-Smith, and Mrs. Nancy Stover, 1991.
1991.004.023

Patola saris, from the western Indian state of Gujarat, are made using the double-ikat technique, a complex and time-consuming process. The weaver creates the double-ikat patterns by tie-dying both warp threads (those attached to the loom) and weft threads (those woven between the warp threads) before the cloth is woven. In single ikat, either warp threads or weft threads are tie-dyed, but not both. The main design in this textile represents the leaves of the pipal tree, an auspicious symbol in most Hindu communities. Patola saris were favored by the Gujarat aristocracy in the nineteenth century, but by the twentieth century the style had become popular among the elite throughout India.