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Object Timeline

1905

  • Work on this object began.

1915

  • Work on this object ended.

1971

  • We acquired this object.

2013

2015

2025

  • You found it!

Sample (USA)

This is a Sample. We acquired it in 1971. Its medium is cardboard, linen and its technique is embroidered on dissolvable substrate, mounted on cardboard. It is a part of the Textiles department.

This sample card is one in a series of cards produced by two retailers located in Springfield, Massachusetts. The card is mounted with a lace-like sample entitled "Plauen, or burnt-out Lace" from Forbes & Wallace, a well-known department store. Plauen refers to the town of Plauen, Germany, a locale known for the manufacture of machine-made lace, in particular, "burnout" or chemical lace. The lace produced using this process required an embroidery machine, often times the Schiffli machine, to produce an embroidered design on a cotton or net substrate. Afterwards, chemicals or caustic soda were applied to "burn away" the substrate leaving behind an open, lace-like fabric that could be used for curtain panels as well as other decorative and domestic purposes.

This object was donated by George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum.

Cite this object as

Sample (USA); cardboard, linen; 1971-26-2-28

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<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://www-4.collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/18710749/ |title=Sample (USA) |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=5 February 2025 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>