Description:
Fragment of a supplementary, weft-patterned (brocaded) silk. The ground is a thin, yellow plain weave silk similar to a lustring or taffeta. Some of the wefts are untwisted and floated to create a self-patterned lace/feather effect, known as a flush, or flushing. Supplementary, weft-patterned floats were added by a drawloom's figure harness to create a floral spray pattern in an impressive ten colors; two shades of blue, yellow, white, two shades of green, two shades of pink, maroon, brown, and peach. The largest floral motif measures 6" long by 5 3/4" wide. The design is repeated twice across the selvage width of the material, whihc measures 21 1/4". The broaced designs are then dropped and flipped half way between the previous designs on the next line (staggered),. Thsi is done partly to balance the weave when on the loom (to prevent puckering) but also aided in creating the illusion of a naturalistic, seemingly random and natural floral pattern. The vertical repeat is about 18 - 19". The silk was likely woven as a dress silk, rather than a furnishing silk. Patterned silks such as this example were some of the costly fabrics availabe for dress and furnishings in the 18th century. It could take many months to design, prepare the loom, and weave them. English and European centers of 18th-century silk weaving included Spitalfields (East London), Lyon (298 miles from Paris), and Amsterdam and Haarlem in Holland. There is evidence that these costly fabrics were imported and worn in New England, but in far fewer numbers.
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https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=HD+F.763 |
