Dukula

Dukula was an ancient Indian cloth made from the bark of trees.[1] Some contemporary varieties kshauma, netra, and tiritpatta including Dukul were among the fabrics that were comparable to silk.[2] Some sources suggest that Dukula was silk,[3] but actually it was made of bark fiber As a result, it was a fine linen. According to Amarasimha, the word "dukula" was a synonym for "ksauma" (linen)[4][5]: 11 

Mentions

Dukula (especially with the swan pattern) is recognized as arguably the finest cloth in the Gupta period literature.[2]: 15 Bāṇabhaṭṭa, a seventh-century scholar (who was the Asthana Kavi in the court of King Harsha Vardhana), also makes reference to "hansa dukula", a material patterned with hansa (swan or goose). The gods and kings wore it. The Harshacharita (King Harsha Vardhana of Kanauj's biography) lists a variety of textiles, Banabhatta describes a range of textiles displayed during an exhibition at Harsha's sister's (Rajyashri's) wedding. "Dukula," "amshuka," "kshauma," "badara," and "netra" are among the names he mentions.[2]: 15  [5]: 15 [6]: 276 

Kumārasambhava poem of Kalidasa also refers to "dukula" while comparing the attire of Lord Shiva and the Hindu goddess Parvati.[2]: 15  Kalidasa also mentioned Dukula in Vikramōrvaśīyam and Ṛtusaṃhāra. He referred to Dukula as silk.[2]: 15 

Production

Bengal was a well-known production centre for these types of cloths.[6] Kautilya in Arthashastra acknowledges Bengal as a producer of Dukula.[7]

See also

• Kausheya (silk)
• Hamsa (bird)

References

1. Prakash, Om (2005). Cultural History of India. New Age International. p. 382. ISBN 978-81-224-1587-2.
2. Agrawal, Yashodhara (2003). Silk brocades. Internet Archive. New Delhi : Roli Books. p. 10. ISBN 978-81-7436-258-2.
3. Eitel, Ernest John; Takakuwa, K. (1904). Hand-book of Chinese Buddhism, being a Sanskrit-Chinese dictionary with vocabularies of Buddhist terms in Pali, Singhalese, Siamese, Burmese, Tibetan, Mongolian and Japanese. Robarts - University of Toronto. Tokyo, Sanshusha. pp. 54, 55.
4. Mookerji, Radhakumud (2016-01-01). Chandragupta Maurya and His Times. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 117. ISBN 978-81-208-0433-3.
5. Journal Of The Indian Society Of Oriental Art Vol.12. 1944.
6. Das, Santosh Kumar (1925). Economic history of ancient India. Santosh Kumar Das, Howrah. p. 146.
7. Journal of the Bihar and Orissa research society. 1919. p. 320.