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 double darning on the diagonal and satin stitch, and with metal thread in double darning on the diagonal and fishbone stitch |
| Brief description | Towel or napkin, embroidered, Turkish, 1800s. |
| Physical description | Towel/Napkin, linen embroidered with silk in double darning on the diagonal and satin stitch and with metal thread in double darning on the diagonal and fishbone stitch. The motif, which is repeated across the width, is a horizontal stem ending in a blue or pink three-petalled flower to the sideo fwhich is a smaller flower in the alternate colour. A second stem is attached to the first and bears many small, pointed flowers in pink and mauve. |
| Dimensions |
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| Style | |
| Credit line | Given by Prof. and Mrs Percy Newberry |
| Subject 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 Publication, 2001); plate 112 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | CIRC.910-1926 |
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| Record created | February 1, 2001 |
| Record URL |
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