Nakshi Kantha of Bengal

The art of Kantha or embroidered quilt has been flourishing in rural Bengal for centuries. Its exquisite beauty was brought to the notice of citydwellers, and to some extent to the outside world. The Author has now produced a commendable work on the Kantha art of Bengal, the result of extensive research, painstaking fieldwork, introspective analysis and collection of materials from far and near. She starts with a brief history of needlework in the world and its practice in India from an early date. She dwells upon the large social content of the Kantha that genuinely reflects the world of the Bengali women. A Care full analysis further brings out the reflections of folk beliefs and practices, of religious ideas, of themes and charecters from mythologies and epics, of flora and fauna, and finally of man and nature. The Kantha, in its own way, depicts the social and personal life of the people. She has given the information of the Museums, Organisation, and personal collections of Kantha in different part of the world alongwith bibliographic details.