Not on display

Length of Silk

19th century - 20th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
China (made)

Bolt of dark yellow palin weave slub silk. The selvedges are red and green.

Object details

Category
Textiles
Object type
Length of silk
Materials and techniques
Plain weave slub silk
Silk (Textile)
Plain Weave
Brief description
Bolt of silk, dark yellow plain weave slub silk, China, 19th-20th century
Physical description
Bolt of dark yellow palin weave slub silk. The selvedges are red and green.
Dimensions
  • Length: 732cm
  • Width: 71.5cm
Gallery label
FE.117 to 119-1983
These three lengths were woven from slub silk, which is silk with an uneven surface due to small lumps in the yarn. This type of silk is more commonly associated with Southeast Asia than with China and it may be that at least two of them came from that region.
We know from the Beijing paper shop label attached to the light brown and orange lengths that this must have been sold in China's capital city. The labels also claim that the silk was originally made in Southeast Asia. However, we might question the reliability of this statement and the knowledge of the shopkeeper who wrote out the tags, as the lengths may have been made by minority groups within China who are ethnically related to Southeast Asians. The dark yellow length has no shop label.
The fact that these lengths were purchased by Sir John Addis shows an interest on his part in the texture and appearance of textiles rather than imply an interest in collecting pieces of known provenance.
The size and quality of these lengths probably means that they were to be used for garments. The light orange and dark yellow silks have evidence of staining which may be the result of sizing - a technique used on fabrics to seal the fibres and keep the textiles strong.
Credit line
Addis Bequest
Object history
Registered File number 1965/3344.
Collection
East Asia Collection
Accession number
FE.118-1983

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Record createdFebruary 12, 2000
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O23498/length-of-silk-unknown/
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