Our next destination was the Anokhi Museum, housed in an excellently restored haveli. An admirer of the wooden block printed cloth for which Anokhi is so famous, I was interested in learning about the process and history of the technique. The displays were well lit and signposted, giving those interested plenty to read. In an open courtyard, a man sat on the floor, deeply engaged in carving a wood printing block. He explained that it took him 10 days working eight hours a day to make one block out of teak wood. Many of the prints used three blocks to create the pattern, requiring precision and planning on the part of the carver. A wood block could stamp around 1,600 meters of cloth before it needed to be retired. Mr. Mugeebulla Khan had 35 years of experience, having started at ten years of age, following the footsteps of his father.
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