ಕಸೂತಿ (Kasuti)
Kasuti is the traditional embroidery of Karnataka, practiced by women of the Lingayat community of northern Karnataka (Dharwad, Hubli, Gadag districts) on silk or cotton fabric, using a counted thread technique with fine cotton or silk thread. The technique employs four distinct stitch types — Gavanti (double running stitch), Murgi (step stitch), Negi (weaving stitch), and Menthi (interlocked cross stitch) — combined to create intricate geometric and pictorial patterns. The subjects are drawn from Hoysala temple architecture, the palanquin, the elephant, the peacock, and local temple gopuram forms. Kasuti was historically embroidered on the ilkal sari (from Ilkal, Karnataka) as border ornamentation and on blouses. It is a domestic tradition — women embroidered for personal and family use, not for trade. The shift to commercial production has altered both the technique speed and the stitch fidelity.
Risk level: Endangered · Not inscribed; GI registered (2005)
Varak (also waraq) is the Rajasthani craft of beating pure gold or silver into paper-thin leaf and hand-block-printing it onto textiles.
Kanchipuram silk is the most celebrated silk weaving tradition of South India, produced in Kanchipuram (also Kancheepuram) city in Tamil Nadu by the Devangas and Mudaliar weaver communities.
Tanjore painting is a classical South Indian panel painting tradition from Thanjavur (Tanjore), Tamil Nadu, distinguished by its rich surface ornamentation: gold foil applied over raised gesso relief forms the jewelry, crowns, and…
Sujni is a quilted embroidery tradition from the Bhusura and Mirzapur clusters of Muzaffarpur and Sitamarhi districts in Bihar, practiced by women of the Dalit community.
Sikki is a coiled and woven craft tradition from the Mithila region of Bihar (and adjacent Nepal Terai), using sikki grass (Cyperus tegetiformis or related golden sedge species) — a naturally golden-yellow grass that grows in waterlogged…
Pattachitra (from Sanskrit: patta = cloth/leaf; chitra = picture) is a classical painting tradition of Odisha practiced primarily in Raghurajpur village (Puri district) by the Chitrakara community.
A traditional form of hand embroidery on women's attire, formally documented as its own distinct craft domain within Bahrain's official UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage inventory, genuinely technically distinct from the archive's…
Hue royal court embroidery (thêu cung đình) is the most refined embroidery tradition in Vietnam — developed under the Nguyen Dynasty (1802–1945) to decorate imperial robes, court textiles, and ceremonial objects for the Hue royal palace.
Shui horse-tail embroidery (水族马尾绣) is one of the most unusual material approaches in any embroidery tradition globally — the core thread is made by wrapping colored silk around actual strands of horse tail hair, producing a composite…
Kyō-Nui (京繍 — Kyoto embroidery) is the court embroidery tradition of Kyoto — producing the embroidered elements of Noh costume, Buddhist vestments, and formal kimono accessories in silk and gold thread on silk ground cloth.
A collective, team-based hand embroidery craft producing intricate gold-thread embellishments on women's garments and accessories, formally documented as its own distinct craft domain, Kurar, within Bahrain's official UNESCO Intangible…
Hmong batik and appliqué (Paj Ntaub Kab Ke — 'flower cloth in layers') is the primary textile art of the Hmong (Miao) people of northern Laos — combining wax-resist batik, reverse appliqué, and embroidery in a single garment panel.