Kerchief
1750-1795 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
A kerchief is a square cloth with a narrow decorative border along two or more sides. It could be used on the head or shoulders or tied around the hips. From about the 1720s onwards Ottoman embroidery stopped copying woven designs and became a truly creative art form: new, naturalistic floral motifs were introduced and many of them were depicted in great detail. Some were allowed to sway and sweep across the fabric, some were stylised and many were enriched with metal thread. The colours were originally very bright but have often faded to pleasing pastel shades. Although the technique of this piece is Ottoman, the drawing is more reminiscent of European botanical drawings of the mid-18th century. This kerchief may have been embroidered in Istanbul, or in one of the former European provinces of the Otoman empire in which Ottoman embroidery and needlewomen were highly prized.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Silk, embroidered with silk in double darning, double running in a line and satin stitch, and with metal thread in double darning, musabak and satin stitch |
| Brief description | Silk embroidery on gauze; Turkish; early 19th century. |
| Physical description | Kerchief, transparent silk embroidered along two adjoining sides with silk in double darning, double running in a line and satin stitch, and with metal thread in double darning, musabak and satin stitch. In the corner is a strong diagonal line formed by two stems, the upper one bearing a large pink carnation and two buds. Extremely fine stems swirl along the two sides and link many small flowers and sprays of flowers including: roses, columbine and daffoldils. There is one selvedge but the three other sides have been cut and the outer narrow border is missing. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Object history | Registered File number 1929/7806. |
| Production | Although the technique is Ottoman, the drawing is more reminiscent of European botanical drawings of the mid-18th century. This kerchief may have been embroidered in Istanbul, or in one of the former European provinces of the Otoman empire in which Ottoman embroidery and needlewomen were still highly prized. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | A kerchief is a square cloth with a narrow decorative border along two or more sides. It could be used on the head or shoulders or tied around the hips. From about the 1720s onwards Ottoman embroidery stopped copying woven designs and became a truly creative art form: new, naturalistic floral motifs were introduced and many of them were depicted in great detail. Some were allowed to sway and sweep across the fabric, some were stylised and many were enriched with metal thread. The colours were originally very bright but have often faded to pleasing pastel shades. Although the technique of this piece is Ottoman, the drawing is more reminiscent of European botanical drawings of the mid-18th century. This kerchief may have been embroidered in Istanbul, or in one of the former European provinces of the Otoman empire in which Ottoman embroidery and needlewomen were highly prized. |
| Bibliographic reference | Illustrated in 'Ottoman Embroidery' by Marianne Ellis and Jennifer Wearden (V&A Publication, 2001); plates 83 and 84 |
| Other numbers |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | T.123-1929 |
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| Record created | February 2, 2001 |
| Record URL |
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