Copy of the Goods of Montpellier
1810
Medium
Cotton, plain weave; block printed and copperplate printed; total of swatches: 2390
Dimensions
Average length of swatches: H.: 3.9 cm (1 1/2 in.); Average width of swatches: W.: 2.5 cm (1 in.); Measurement of volume: 49.2 × 19.7 × 4.5 cm (19 3/8 × 7 3/4 × 1 3/4 in.); 51.3 × 21.6 × 7.8 cm (20 1/8 × 8 5/8 × 3 in.)
Classification
textile
Department
Textiles
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
6623
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This book illustrates the huge variety of intricate patterns printed in vivid colors on cotton textiles for fashion during the early 19th century. The book comes from Montpellier, a town on the southern coast of France that is not known today as a center of textile printing. Thus these samples indicate how much more widespread the textile industry was in Europe during the Industrial Revolution. This book contains more than 2,300 small samples.
About the Artist
Unknown
The artist designated as "Unknown" in our virtual museum's collection exemplifies a poignant chapter in art history: creators whose identities have faded into obscurity despite the enduring power of their work. With only one known artwork attributed to them in our holdings, this figure represents countless anonymous hands that shaped visual culture across centuries. Museums worldwide, including th...