Abstract
AMONG THE MOST STRIKING SIGHTS of daily life in Pakistan are the ever present, ornately decorated Bedford trucks which adorn every congested city, traversing the Grand Trunk and every passable road from the southern tip of Sind to the far reaches of the northern frontiers and across the Afghanistan border. For native Pakistanis they are a commonplace sign of the thriving overland transport industry, and for foreign visitors they are garish curiosities: topheavy wooden structures on wheels, covered with clashing motifs of screaming tigers, floral arrangements, mosques, roaring trains, barnyard roosters, jet aircraft, peacocks, Buraq figures, and panoramic views of Kashmir. For the social anthropologist, they are an ideal case study in the evolution of a modern artisan trade, combining artisan skills, lively innovation, religious poetic piety, and modern secular motifs. Since the works are neither traditional nor pristine, they have warranted no more than a single scholarly article1 and a few passing references.2 Yet, a
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