I looked around a bit more on the Victoria & Albert museum site and found some other linen pieces that the V&A states were block printed. I've listed the Accession no's below for your reference.
The very early pieces (14th century) were from Germany and Italy, although in the notes it states that by the last quarter of the 15th century this process was also being used in England. I don't believe these early pieces were intended for embroidery. They appear to be just decorative fabrics and remind me a little of today's Toil de Jouy fabric. This is a small sampling, and in my mind, doesn't rule out the possibility that embroidery patterns were also being block printed ( V&A's term) onto linen for embroidery. I'd need to research it further to make a conclusion.
The early 17th century pieces in my list are for embroidery, and they are from England. The V&A is terming it "block printing" on piece T.174B-1931, although if you read the descriptive plate photographed with the coif, there it states that it was printed from engraved plates. Curiouser and curiouser...
Here's the list of pieces at the V& A:
Acc No. Title Origin Date
1745-1888 Printed Linen Germany 1350-1400
7027-1860 Printed Linen Italy 1350-1400
T.21-1946 Coif Britain 1600-1629
T.174B-1931 Linen England Early 17th c.
"... and the works of their hands tell a story - each thread connecting us to those who came before. And the story endures...." from Piecework Magazine 1993
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I would thought that engraving and block printing were radically different, more particularly since I suspect engraving would be a later technique as it requires higher pressure... It certainly sounds as though the V&A need to be a bit more precise in their terminology!
ReplyDeleteHi Rachel,
ReplyDeleteThey are different techniques. Block printing, I'm assuming, means wood block printing. Engraving would be a design cut onto a metal plate and then stamped on paper (using ink, obviously). Etchings, which came later I believe, also are designs cut into metal plates, but acid is used to "cut" the design into the plates instead of tools.
It sounds like you're having fun!
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