Antique Cloth Picture

This is a antique cloth picture of my Grandfather with his pet bear. The bear is being held on a chain and is climbing a tree. The bear was the talk of the community until it became aggressive and was sold to a circus. It measures about 13 1/2" x 10" and that is the picture print on the cloth. The cloth itself measures a little more. I am interested in knowing on when this process of putting pictures on cloth was first started in the early days and for how long it was done. I would greatly appreciate any information on this item that would help me to further my search.