Artwork Page for Towel End

Details / Information for Towel End

Towel End

c. 1800–1825

Russia, Nizhny-Novgorod province, early 19th century

Medium
Linen: plain weave ground; wool; metal thread: embroidery, chain stitch; silk: ribbon
Measurements
Overall: 37 x 43 cm (14 9/16 x 16 15/16 in.)
Credit Line
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund 1931.133
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
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Did You Know?

Embroidering the ends of everyday towels was a common folk tradition in many cultures because it displayed the skill of the mother or daughter who stitched them.

Description

This Russian embroidered panel was likely used to embellish the end of a bathing towel. Textiles of this type are valuable for their fine embroidery of ancient folk motifs, ritual significance, exemplification of the role of textiles in their society, and in this case, connection to a prominent woman collector, Natalia de Shabelsky, without whom this textile and others like it might have been lost.
A horizontally oriented linen and wool embroidery depicts a man in a brown coat and a woman in a pink dress standing within a central archway. All figures featured have light skin tones. Two large trees with green leaves and red buds flank the arch. Below, a multicolored fence sits above a floral scroll border. The panel is bordered by yellow silk at the top and finished with blue patterned ribbon and metallic fringe.

Towel End

c. 1800–1825

Russia, Nizhny-Novgorod province, early 19th century

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