17th-18th century
Complex silk weaves such as this were woven on draw-looms. Their colorful and finely rendered patterns required careful planning to translate designs onto the loom. The end result was a once colorful textile featuring bright orange, blue, and green dyes to color the ogival and floral motifs while a background pattern of diamonds composed of metal wrapped and white silk threads created a shimmering background.
Book of swatches mounted on paper (56 sheets)
19th-20th centuryJapaneseWool and linen, tapestry woven
7th centuryCopticFiber
ItalianTextile fibers
20th centuryGermanSilk in tapestry weave (kesi), selected elements woven in metallic threads
ChineseInk on silk
20th centuryAustrianFiber
Italianwool; twill tapestry weave, double-interlocked; supplementary discontinuous wefts
19th centuryIndianSilk on cotton
20th centuryAfghan