A cloth from the Nebaj region in Guatemala, with a woven and embroidered design of birds, lama's etc., late 20th century (TRC 2020.4575).As a result of the recently announced Dutch Government’s corona strategy the TRC will be closing its doors to the public for two weeks. We will re-open on Monday 23 November. We will, however, be continuing registering books for the TRC Library, entering textiles into the TRC Database, preparing actual and online exhibitions for next year, as well as working out an extensive diary of workshops, study days and courses. And there are going to be many diverse activities on offer! Click here to see the programme.
With respect to the TRC Catalogue, we are working on two different sections. Firstly, we are going through every single box (and there are hundreds!) in the depot where the textiles, clothing, etc., are stored and making sure all the objects are numbered, catalogued, photographed and that all of this information is available online via our online database. This will take quite a few months, but well worth while. For example, we are currently working on the Chinese, Indian and Romanian sections of the TRC Collection.
Another group of volunteers is adding new items to the TRC Collection, including many 20th century printed textiles (Cuvelier-Pepin collection, see blog of 28 March 2020), as well as items that have recently been given to the TRC. Some of this work is being carried out at the TRC (behind closed doors), while other items and details are being added by people working from home.
The latest arrivals for the TRC Collection actually arrived yesterday, in the form of a large box from Los Angeles! This donation includes various men and women’s garments from Mexico and Guatemala, which were kindly given by Charles and Carolyn Knobler who have already given a range of garments on a number of previous occasions (blog). The new items should all be online by next week (TRC 2020.4558 – TRC 2020.4576).
Front page of the publication 'France - Broderie,' November 1949 (TRC 2020.4579).The garments include various types of embroidered garments that will be invaluable for research needed for the Americas volume of the Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of World Embroidery series that is being produced by the TRC Leiden (blog of 20 August 2019).
Other related items, this time for the current volume of the embroidery series (Scandinavia and Western Europe) are two pattern newsletters from the late 1940's for professional embroiderers in France. These are copies of the "FRANCE-BRODERIE" (TRC 2020.4579) and the "SCARLETT Broderie de Paris" (TRC 2020.4580). The patterns published in these newsletters include a range of initials and simple designs generally for working in whitework, and regarded as suitable for lingerie and trousseau's.
But perhaps the most intriguing donation was given a few days ago by Kees van der Zwan – it’s a small piece of purple, woollen broadcloth (TRC 2020.4528). It is attached to a piece of paper with a text, in Dutch, in a neat 19th century hand that the cloth came from a pall that covered the coffin of the famous French emperor, Napoleon Bonaparte, who died in 1821, but whose body was only brought to Paris in 1840. More details about the textile and the historical story it is associated with will be published over the next few weeks, with the help of Mr. van der Zwan. It’s a story that is already causing considerable interest and curiosity and it is clear that there is a lot more to come! And all due to a tiny scrap of cloth.
Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood, Director Textile Research Centre, Leiden. 6 November 2020.
