Shawl

1840–1850 · Medium: silk, cotton, wool Technique: 3/1 twill patterned by supplementary wefts (multicolor) bound on the front in 1/3 twill. Double interlocked tapestry weave. The floats of the supplementary wefts on the back were cut off after weaving in the finishing proess to reduce weight. The foundation weft is white wool in the center and brown cotton in both patterned ends. The warp was dyed orange for the areas which are densely patterned, but not for the white square in the middle. At both ends, sections of warp are dyed to intensify the colors of the tapestry woven bars and the fringe.

From the collection of Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.