Towel or napkin, embroidered, Turkish, 1800s.

Towel or Napkin, linen woven with bands of cotton, embroidered with silk in double darning on the diagonal, double running in a line, satin stitch, fishbone and spaced cross stitch and with metal thread in double darning on the diagonal, double running in a line, fishbone and satin stitch.
There is a line of simple stiches in dark pink along the ends above which is afloral motif repeated across the width: a fine stem begins with a curl and then divides into three. The central stem goes through a dark pink flower and ends in a pink flower. The outer stems bear the same pink flower between pair of white, four-petalled flowers. There are small leaves in two shades of green and in pink.

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.

CIRC.631-1923