February

Before Europeans discovered the sea route to India from 1469 onwards, trade in Indian textiles took place along the fabled Silk Road. The historic Indian city of Lahore (now in Pakistan), was an important trading centre along the route through Northern India, connecting the markets of the Far East with those of Central Asia and the Levant (Eastern Mediterranean region).

According to Rene J. Barendse in his book The Arabian Seas: The Indian Ocean World of the Seventeenth Century, there was a "substantial textile industry in the Punjab" during the 17th and 18th centuries and Lahore was the "main centre for this commerce".

Merchants of India came to the city to invest in commodities and join Caravans heading for Persia. In 1799 Lahore became the Royal capital of the Empire of Punjab established by the Sikh ruler, Maharaja Ranjit Singh. It's continuing status as a major trade centre was reflected in the wealth of the Sikh Empire and it's nobles - not least the rich textile fashions and dazzling furnishings of the Sikh court which were renowned throughout the world.