Chope Phulkari - As the little granddaughter of the house steps into womanhood, her maternal grandmother takes on the task of fabricating a tale that holds her love in every stitch. Phulkari helped in marking the most important moments in a girl’s life; from the time she comes of age and steps into womanhood, her marriage, to the birth of her first child and her death. This type of extra-large sized Phulkari seen here is known as chope. Traditionally, it was presented to a bride by either her maternal grandmother or her maternal uncle. She receives this gift either after the ceremonial wedding bath (vatna) or during the ceremonial presentation of cream and red bangles (chuda). This chope has been embroidered with golden yellow coloured silken threads (pat) in the most exquisite finesse. It has been embroidered on the rough coarse material “khaddar” that reflects the tough, hard nature of the Punjabi women, but wearing a “Phulkari” adds delicacy, grace, simplicity to their heavy build personality. The red hue of the khaddar is a symbol of auspiciousness, health and fertility, while the gold-colored thread represents prosperity. The design seen here has been created by using the holbein stitch. What makes chope different than the other types of Phulkari is the straight with two sided line stitch which appears exactly same on both the side. Before finishing off, the ‘Nazar butti’ has been embroidered on the side to ward off the influence of the evil eye. To some, the large triangular motifs on a chope are equally symbolic: the triangles pointing upwards represent the Hindu god Shiva and the male aspect, while the triangles pointing downwards represent Shakti, the female aspect— depictions intended to illustrate the bride and groom, and offer wishes for a happy union. SIZE- 340 x 200 cms.