Napkin
1800-1899 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
At the end of the 18th century embroidery designs began to develop into rigid and heavily stylised borders for towels and napkins. The colours of 18th and 19th century embroideries were originally very bright but many have faded to pleasing pastel shades; often great quantities of metal thread were used. Napkins were mainly used to clean fingers during meals, but were also used as decoration and as covers. Their designs were consistently inventive.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Linen, embroidered with silk in variations and combinations of double running stitch, and with metal thread in double running variations |
| Brief description | Towel or napkin, embroidered, Turkish, 1800s. |
| Physical description | Towel or Napkin, linen embroidered with silk in variations and combinations of double running stitch and with metal thread in double running variations. There is a border along either end in which pairs of pink and yellow flowerheads alternate; each flower is separated from it neighbour by a green Z- or S-shaped line. Standing on this border are five bowls, each separated by a slender cypress tree. The bowl contains two yellow flowerhead and a large pink flower with five small green sprigs around its tip. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Credit line | Given by Miss Baxter |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | At the end of the 18th century embroidery designs began to develop into rigid and heavily stylised borders for towels and napkins. The colours of 18th and 19th century embroideries were originally very bright but many have faded to pleasing pastel shades; often great quantities of metal thread were used. Napkins were mainly used to clean fingers during meals, but were also used as decoration and as covers. Their designs were consistently inventive. |
| Bibliographic reference | Illustrated in 'Ottoman Embroidery' by Marianne Ellis and Jennifer Wearden (V&A Publications, 2001); plate 142 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | CIRC.749-1912 |
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| Record created | January 19, 2001 |
| Record URL |
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