Shrine cloth (kanduri), perhaps offered to the mausoleum of the Muslim warrior saint Sayyid Salar Masud

This appliquéd textile is of a type given as offerings to the shrine of a certain Muslim warrior saint in north central India. Such cloths may have been draped over the saint's tomb. Some of the details of this example are different, however, from the standard ones on offering cloths of this type. Here, helmeted soldiers or police—some riding elephants—are shown carrying what seem to be rifles or truncheons and shields. It is not yet known what event is depicted. However, the town where the shrine is located was several times the site of demonstrations against British rule. It is conceivable that this scene portrays the soldiers or police suppressing such a demonstration.