Bed curtain, Britain, 1625–75

Silk bed curtain; appliqued with motifs worked in silk on linen canvas; embroidered with silk, floss silk and fragments of peacock feathers (Pavo cristatus) twisted with silk, Britain, 1625-1675

Given by Margaret Simeon

RF number 1983/572.

Valance (T.322-1980) and curtains (T.54-1983, T.119&120-1992) were first sold at Philips in the late 1960s to early 1970s, when they were described as a 19th century reproduction. They were bought by Miss Margaret Simeon, who taught history of design at the Wimbledon School of Art. Simeon was bron in 1910, trained at the Chelsea School of Art and teh Royal College of Art and worked as a freelance textile designer. She and her sister were both artists and collected an extensive collection of ceramics, textiles and other decorative arts. Margaret Simeon was particularly interested in lace and wrote the following book: Simeon, Margaret. The history of lace. London: Staines and Bell, 1979.

T.54-1983