Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-01-30
THE BEAUTIFUL BILLEvAEy
WEAVING DONE BY WOMEN OF
THE NORWEGIAN NOBILITY.
Work of Art Sold to Leading
Museums and the Royal
Houses of Norway.
From Town and Country.

From Town and Country
The beautiful Billevaev. or pict1,re
weaving. as the tapestry making of Nor.
way may be called. has for many years
created Juror in Europe. 1t is a work
OF art which is much sought and is sold
TO the leading museums in Europe and
to the royal houses of Norway, Sweden.
England. Germany and Italy.
Nine. Frida koehler Hansen of Christi.
ania has devoted her life to designing
and planning for sale these TAPESTRIES
assisted by one of Norway's greatest
painters. Gerhardt Munthe. The govern.
ment Of Norway made a law that onlv
the ladies Of the nobility could execute
this work In Norway, and as MANY Of
them are poor it is today a valued means
or earning money In their ancestral
homes.
Mime. Hansen's Work.
Mime. Hansen is the only person who
knows who does the work in response
to the orders which she procures. The
law greatly limits the number Of work.
ers. and consequently the tapestries are
scarce and must be ordered many months
before they are needed.
As there are not enough workers to
supply the demand, II has been decided
that other women. though not in Nor
way. shall be allowed to weave these
tapestries. One or two enterprising wom-
en- are now teaching Bilevaev in Amer
lea.
Some of the few pieces made I'm this
country were exhibited at the National
Arts Club IN New York in May, 1905
aud were OF much interest TO those who
saw for the first time this exquisite work
manship. Already the few women who
have undertaken the craft are kept busy.
and no doubt If more people knew of the
necessity for good weayers MANY would
take up the work.
These tapestries differ from any others
by being woven alike on both sides They
are particularly we'll adapted for por-
there's and curtains, but the boldness OF
the treatment and the pictorial effect Of
the designs make them especially beau
tiful for wall hangings. Most of the
tapestries are the creation OF Nine.
Hansen and show the work of the true
artist She took up the work with a pa
triotic spirit. fearing that this beautiful
craft would soon disappear unless en-
plotted In art centers.
Wool, Hand Spun.
The wool from which these tapestries
are woven is hand carded and hand spun,
thereby keeping it's richness Yarn spun
by machinery is deprived of more than
half it's warmth. Before the wool is dyed
and spun the tapestry drawing must be
painted In color. as this has to be faith
fully reproduced in the weaving itself
The looms are upright and the design
is placed behind the warps So that it can
be accurately copied when seen through
the warp.
The wool is then dyed, each piece being
matched to the design. The shading is
done In the dyeing of the wool itsefi, the
different shades Of wool all being planned
before spinning the yarn, just as a paint
er would mix his colors on a palette.
In beginning a rug the first part is us,l-
ally unbroken by design. so that shut
tie can be used to throw the wool across
the loom until the design is reached
Then comes the intricate part OF the
weaving. Large needles are employed The
process may be likened to darnirg rather
than to weaving, for this requires the
use Of many needles threaded with many
colors. After darning with one needle an
other needle may be taken up. threaded
with different color for another part OF
the design.