‘… you have to till the earth 16 times to cultivate radish and you have to till it 8 times to cultivate cotton …’ (sholo chaasher mula, taar ordhek tula, taar ordhek dhaan, bina chaasher paan)
– from an old verse prevalent among the farming community.
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Roxburg's painting of cotton plant which started the search for the missing phuti karpas
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Roman drawing depicting cotton as a product from a sheep-growing plant
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Cotton being cleaned in ancient Bengal
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'Boal' fish, whose jaw with teeth were used to clean the cotton in ancient Bengal
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'Boal' fish jaw used for cleaning cotton in ancient Bangal
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'Dhun' used for separating heavy and light cotton in the past
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Separating cotton from the seeds
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Cotton yarn being spun on the 'takwa' in ancient Bengal
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Cotton yarn being spun on the 'charka' in ancient Bengal
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Cotton yarn being spun on the 'charka' in ancient Bengal
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An example of fine muslin
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Cotton yarn being prepared for passing through the reed in ancient Bengal
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Cotton yarn being prepared for warping in ancient Bengal
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'Tanti' on the loom weaving plain muslin
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Richard Arkwright's spinning frame - 18th century, England
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Samuel Crompton's spinning mule - 18th century, England
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Planting cotton on Bengal Muslin plot
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Spinning yarn on the 'charka' in Cumilla
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Spinning yarn on the 'charka' in Cumilla
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Spinning yarn on the 'charka' in Cumilla
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Yarn being spun on the 'charka' in Cumilla
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Ambar charka, used in India for spinning yarn of different counts
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Cotton plant similar to 'phuti karpas' growing on Bengal Muslin plot
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Winding and reeling the yarn
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Different fineness of reeds (shana) stored at the weavers place
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Applying the yarn on the reed
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Winding the yarn
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Tools used for preparation of yarn
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Wooden spindles used for winding the yarn
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Coloured yarn for motifs on the loom
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Dyed thread for motifs on the loom
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Warping the yarn
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Model loom used for sample manufacture
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View of the loom from the bottom
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Pulling the loom onto the end beam (koler narod)
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Weaver seen through the threads of a loom
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Weavers at the loom
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A 'Jamdani' weaver at the loom
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Weavers' factory operating at night
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Weavers working at jamdani village at night
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Drawings of the various stages of muslin manufacture
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Master Weaver Al Amin working at the loom
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A 'Jamdani' weaver at the loom
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Operating the heddles below the loom
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Operating the foot pedals of the loom
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Master Weaver Al Amin working at the loom
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A weaver working at the loom
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A 'Jamdani' weaver at the loom
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'Jamdani' weavers working at the loom
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A 'Jamdani' weaver working at the loom