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Exports of Indian cotton textiles

Type Object Region South Asia Time c. 1581–1590

In the 1580s, printed cottons, fine muslins, and brocades from Gujarat, the Coromandel Coast, and Bengal shipped from Surat, Masulipatnam, and other …

Timeline

  1. c. 1581–1584Masulipatnam · Andhra PradeshWeavers in the successor regions of the Vijayanagara Empire produced chintz cotton cloth using block printing and multiple mordanting processes, with patterns blending Persian floral and local mythological motifs, priced by the piece awaiting shipment at ports.
  2. c. 1584–1587Surat · GujaratThe Mughal port of Surat gathered cotton cloth from Gujarat and Bengal; Persian and Arab merchants traded silver coins and horses for it, and Portuguese carracks also loaded cloth here for transshipment to the Red Sea and Lisbon.
  3. c. 1587–1590Batavia · IndonesiaIndian cotton cloth was distributed via the Strait of Malacca to Java, Banten, and Manila, some sailing around the Cape of Good Hope to Antwerp and London; growing European demand for printed cotton cloth drove continued expansion of Indian weaving and dyeing capacity.

Sources