Berlin Woolwork Pattern
notes: label: Description
content: Der Politiker, a Berlin woolwork pattern. Printed square paper with symbols printed in some squares, forming a rudimentary pattern. Complete pattern executed by water-colorist using the symbols as a guide. Interior scene with table, candle, chair and man in colonial dress reading the newspaper. Flame from the candle has caught the rim of his hat on fire.
label: Description
content: According to Miss Lambert’s Handbook of Needlework published in 1846, in 1805 a Mr. Phillipson introduced hand painted patterns on ‘point paper’ (graph paper). However, some people thought his patterns were devoid of taste and in 1810 a Madame Wittich prevailed upon her husband, a printseller of note in Berlin to undertake the publication of a series of these patterns. Miss Lambert claimed to have gotten her information from Mr. Wittich. To produce the patterns a master copy of the design was made on paper, then a copperplate was engraved with faint symbols in each square indicating the color. The plate was printed, and colorists painted each square using a tiny square-tipped brush. In 1820 with the introduction of Berlin wools comes the name Berlin woolwork patterns.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
place: label: sold
content: United States
setName: label: See more items in
content: Home and Community Life: Textiles
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content: Victorian Needlework
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content: Textiles
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Hope Hanley Levy
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1998.0360.220
label: accession number
content: 1998.0360
label: catalog number
content: 1998.0360.220
objectType: label: Object Name
content: pattern for embroidery
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: paper (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: overall: 15 5/8 in x 13 in; 39.6875 cm x 33.02 cm