WOVEN PATTERNS

P ATTERN AND ITS REPETITION.—It will be readilyunderstood, that, owing to the structural necessities of theloom, the pattern should repeat in some ordered sequence;hence repetition has been always and still is an importantfactor in the successful production of woven fabrics.

The scale of the pattern is also a matter of considerableimportance; the larger the pattern, and the greater the numberof threads necessary to weave it, the more complex is theapparatus required to lift the requisite warp threads, thereforesmall patterns are usually more economical to produce.

In the Book of Exodus some indication is given of the type ofpattern used, and its arrangement upon the fabrics woven for theTemple.

“ And they made upon the hems of the robe pomegranates ofblue, and purple, and scarlet, and twined linen. And they made bellsof pure gold, and put the bells between the pomegranates upon thehem of the robe, round about between the pomegranates : a bell anda pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, round about the hem ofthe robe ” (Ex. xxxix. 24—26).

This description clearly indicates not only the units of thepattern, the coloured pomegranate and the golden bell, which werechosen for their significance, but also their arrangement. The modeof weaving is not described, but it was probably of the class calledTapestry-weaving , wholly formed by the weft, and is put in withthe fingers, aided by a bobbin on a needle, the threads extendingonly to the limit of the required colours, instead of being carriedfrom side to side of the web by means of shuttles, as in the case ofordinary weaving.