An attempt has been made in this book to study in detail, the textiles and costumes in the two reputed museums of Hyderabad city viz., the Salar Jung Museum and State Museum, Hyderabad. The textile objects in these museums belong to different periods and different regions of the country and abroad. The material and types are also of different kinds.

Besides a study of the textiles in the museums mentioned above, a thorough comparison of the textiles, costumes and the styles of attire, has been made with the sculptures, paintings and literature of various periods throughout India and adds significance to Andhra.

The book not only focuses its attention on the textile collection in the museums under study but also on the origin and manufacturing technique of the chief fabric materials viz., cotton, silk, woollen, mixed fabrics and also some of their sub varieties. The utility of each textile specimen in possession of the two museums under study is dealt with in a vivid manner. At the end the problems related to storage and preservation of the textile objects in the museums are discussed in brief.

This fascinating study is bound to be useful and evoke interest in a layman, a researcher and a specialist who desire to continue further research in the field of textiles.

Dr. Vanakuri Suguna Sarma has had a brilliant academic record. She won a Rolling Cup for securing highest marks in Sanskrit at University level in B.A. She secured a First class in M.A. and obtained M.Phil (1984) and Ph.D (1993) degrees from Osmania University. She also holds a Diploma in Short-term Museology Course from Salar Jung Museum, Hyderabad. She is a member of Academic bodies like Andhra Pradesh History Congress and attended several seminars and presented research papers at National and International levels. She has also contributed several interesting articles to well-known Research Journals.

Currently Dr. Suguna Sarma is working for the Department of Archaeology and Museums, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad. She has surveyed the remote villages and hamlets of Anantapur, Kurnool and Cuddapah districts in Andhra Pradesh for collection of data for the preparation of Directory of Monuments being brought out in different volumes by the Department. She is carrying on further research in different fields of Archaeology like Buddhism, Iconography, Museology, Art and Architecture etc.

**Contents and Sample Pages**