Antique paisley shawl with provenance. The shawl originally belonged to Agnes Kirk Hannah, b. Montreal May 25, 1798; d. Caledonia NY Sept 19, 1871. The shawl is signed in the black center area with embroidery. The name is in foreign language script.
According to the excellent article on paisley shawls, it was a mid century production technique for blocks to be worked and then constructed together by the master weaver. For more excellent information see: Beyond the Fringe, Shawls of Paisley Design by Meg Andrews, at http://www.victoriana.com/library/paisley/shawl.html.
In 1953 the shawl was taken to ""the museum"" and notes of the event are written on the tag which is attached to the shawl. It has interesting comments! The condition of the shawl is very good but does show some age and wear as would be expected. The red and colors are rich jewel tone shades. Several of the photos make it appear more yellow/red and that is because of the camera lighting only. Border gate ends are pieced and hand embroidered. The body of the paisley area is hand woven and pieced also. Due to the piecing and age, it does not lie totally flat. All Wool. Some very small holes. Black center has some very very thin areas and one small area break.
As quoted from the tag ""A shawl like this of East Indian make classed the weaver as having arrived socially. The Paisley shawls of Scotland were copied from the Indian shawls."" Size: 131 in. long x 55 in. wide.
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