Fragment
Unknown Artist
19th century
Medium
Bobbin lace
Dimensions
L. 10 x 4 inches (25.4 x 10.2 cm)
Classification
Textiles-Laces
Culture
Flemish, Brussels
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Nuttall Collection, Gift of Mrs. Magdalena Nuttall, 1908
Accession Number
08.180.180
Art Historical Context
This delicate *Fragment* of bobbin lace, crafted in 19th-century Brussels by an unknown Flemish artist, exemplifies the exquisite textile artistry of Europe's lace-making heartland. Measuring just 10 by 4 inches, this surviving piece from the opulent world of decorative arts once adorned fashionable garments, furnishings, or ecclesiastical vestments, showcasing Brussels' renown as a global center for fine lace production during the height of the Industrial Age. Bobbin lace, the medium here, involves intricately twisting and intertwining threads held on handheld bobbins over a patterned pillow...