[MR] islamic trade textiles - embroidered vs woven

[Jessica Wilbur]

You know, this discussion would make a fabulous entry in the fabric research
competition at Crown Tourney! ;-)

La vostra in servizio,
--Giuliana

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Betty Eyer" <betty_eyer at yahoo.com>
To: <atlantia at atlantia.sca.org>
Sent: Friday, October 10, 2003 9:42 AM
Subject: [MR] islamic trade textiles - embroidered vs woven


> Forgive the comments, but there seems to still be
> interest, so I thought I would clarify yesterday's
> generalizations.  Then I will go back into my geeky
> existance until someone rattles my chain again.
>
> I went back over some of the books that I own and
> notes from the ILL's I did last year.  The reason that
> there are more samples of the linen (or cotton) with
> bands of bright paterning in embroidery than in
> weaving stripes is that it was less expensive to
> produce.  I could not find any link in the short time
> I spent on it between italian "towels", but I will
> keep that in mind in the future.
>
> Textile production for sale was dominated by the
> royalty sponsored workshops in Islamic countries
> during the time period we have been discussing.  Their
> trade advantage was partly because of the availibility
> of raw goods, government endorsed monopolies, artistic
> and technology advances caused by conquering wide
> geographic areas and finally, on the use of slave
> labor. But even among slaves, there was a hierarchy
> among those tradesmen, and the most skilled and
> respected lived rather priviledged lives for their
> time.  The hierarchy was based on the complexity of
> the work and the cost of the materials.  So thread of
> gold and silver was first, then silk, then cotton and
> linen (use interchangably depending on
> geography/agriculture) and wool, pretty much in that
> order.  In the skill department - advanced weaving
> styles (lampas, damask, brocade, open work, etc.),
> then regional specialties (yemen cloth, ikat,
> tapestry), then embroidery, then block print, then
> painting.
>
> The highest prices worldwide were given for styles
> favored by the royalty and for imitations of
> fashionable chinese styles, in silk with gold or
> silver threads, requiring a high degree of skilled
> labor to produce.  The Europeans did not much
> distinguish Chinese silks from Islamic silks because
> they bought them in most cases from the same merchants
> and through the same trade routes.
>
> Like other monopolies, over time creativity and
> innovation waned along with the eagerness to please
> the customer (why am I thinking of Microsoft?).  After
> the trade shift I mentioned in an earlier email, the
> goods from Italy began to be in demand in the east and
> a cross-cultural exchange began which eventually
> developed a truly international style. At that point
> determining the source of an item by its style,
> technology or contents became more and more difficult.
>  Modern carbon dating and forensic research has
> overturned long accepted classifications of old
> textiles and revealed an amazing amount of knockoffs
> right down to weaving a false shop name into the
> selvedge(the medieval equivalent of producing your own
> Gucci handbags).
>
> So if linen cloth with beautiful silk stripes could
> have been produced in Europe in the thirteenth century
> at a cheaper price than the similar islamic imports it
> would have been a very profitable enterprise.
>
> I better put some of this creative energy into my day
> job now.
>
> =====
> Magdalena de Hazebrouck-Purpure, a fess fusilly argent between three
torches or.
> "There are two types of music.  The Blues and Zippity Doo Dah." Townes Van
Zandt
>
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