Towel End
Unknown Artist
c. 1700s–1800s
Medium
cotton or linen (est.); straight (continuous) bobbin lace (Vologda tape lace). The tape forms figural or plant motifs outlined with gimp (heavy cord) with a polychrome plaited ground linking the tape; applied silk (est.) ribbon
Dimensions
26 × 37 cm
Classification
Lace
Department
Textiles
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Accession Number
1931.107
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This lace was used to embellish a towel end. Textiles of this type are valuable for their lace work depicting ancient folk motifs, ritual significance, exemplification of the role of textiles in Russian society, and connection to a prominent woman collector, Natalia de Shabelsky, without whom this textile and others like it might have been lost.