Picture Details
Paddy threshing, weighing and packing
Partner:
British LibraryImage reference:
BL.Add.Or.1740Origin:
Kashmir, IndiaArtist / Date:
Unknown, 1850-60Description:
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Water colour painting done in the Kashmiri style sometime between 1850 and 1860, it is an excellent illustration of the different stages involved in the preparation of paddy for sale. The uppermost register shows a huge heap of freshly harvested sheaves of paddy, being pecked at by birds while bare-chested labourers beat it for separating the rice grains from the chaff. Below this, the heap of winnowed paddy is being weighed before being packed into twin-chambered saddle-bags for carrying to the market on horse-back. The central register shows a Hindu holy man being consulted by a farmer, possibly about his agricultural prospects. While the farm labourers shown here appear to be Muslim, the more responsible tasks like supervising the threshing activity and weighing out the grain are being performed by turbaned men who appear to be non-Muslim.
