Fragment (Towel/Napkin End)
1850/1900
Medium
Linen; silk embroidery
Dimensions
20.3 × 70.5 cm (8 × 27 3/4 in.)
Classification
textile
Department
Textiles
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
75296
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This embroidered textile fragment was cut from the ends of a bath towel. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, Europeans were fascinated by these intricately decorated textiles and fervently collected them, creating a market for fabric fragments. European influence on the market led to stylistic shifts: the stylized floral imagery of earlier periods was replaced with architectural forms and detailed depictions of nature, as seen in this example. —Atlas Defne Erkan (Turkish), graduate studen...
About the Artist
Unknown
The artist designated as "Unknown" in our virtual museum's collection exemplifies a poignant chapter in art history: creators whose identities have faded into obscurity despite the enduring power of their work. With only one known artwork attributed to them in our holdings, this figure represents countless anonymous hands that shaped visual culture across centuries. Museums worldwide, including th...