- Title:
- Naqsh cards
- Object name(s):
- Card game
- Brief description:
- The twelve playing cards representing one of four equal suits or series, which form one complete 'naqsh' pack of 48. Layers of cotton fabric are stretched out and coated with a mixture of white clay and an extract of tamarind seeds acting as binder. After the material is dried and burnished with a stone, it is cut into discs. The discs are then painted and finally stiffened with a thin gruel of millet and lacquered.
- Collection:
- Victoria and Albert Museum
- Associated concept:
- Playing cards & Tarot cards
- Associated concept:
- Folk Art
- Dimension:
- Diameter
- Dimension measurement unit:
- cm
- Dimension value:
- 11.2
- Material:
- Fabric
- Material:
- Paint
- Material:
- Clay
- Material:
- Lacquer
- Object history note:
- A gift received from Dr Rudolf von Leyden in memory of Dr William Archer.
- Object name:
- Card game
- Object number:
- IS.76-1979
- Object production date:
- late 19th century - early 20th century
- Date - association:
- made
- Date - earliest / single:
- 1850-01-01
- Date - latest:
- 1950-12-31
- Object production note:
- Twelve playing cards representing one suit of the 'naqsh' pack.
- Object production person:
- Unknown
- Object production place:
- Bishnupur, Bankura District
- Place association:
- Made
- Physical description:
- The twelve playing cards representing one of four equal suits or series, which form one complete 'naqsh' pack of 48. Layers of cotton fabric are stretched out and coated with a mixture of white clay and an extract of tamarind seeds acting as binder. After the material is dried and burnished with a stone, it is cut into discs. The discs are then painted and finally stiffened with a thin gruel of millet and lacquered.
- Responsible department/section:
- SSEA
- Technique:
- Cotton fabric, starched, painted and lacquered. Back: red.
- Text reason:
- Collections online record
- User's reference:
- Reference:
- Arts of Bengal : the heritage of Bangladesh and eastern India : an exhibition organized by the Whitechapel Art Gallery in collaboration with the Victoria and Albert Museum : 9 November-30 December 1979, Whitechapel Art Gallery ..., 12 January-17 February 1980, Manchester City Art Gallery ... . [London]: Whitechapel Art Gallery, [1979] Number: 085488047X (pbk.) :
- User's reference:
- Reference:
- Von Leyden, Rudolf, Ganjifa The Playing Cards of India, London: Victoria and Albert Museum 1982. ISBN 0 905 20917 6
- User's reference:
- Reference details:
- p.62
Persistent shareable link for this record: https://museumdata.uk/objects/f41c7df4-4a82-321a-a203-c3fcaf6d8702
Use licence for this record: CC BY-NC
Attribution for this record: https://museumdata.uk/objects/f41c7df4-4a82-321a-a203-c3fcaf6d8702, Victoria and Albert Museum, CC BY-NC
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