CHANGES IN DESIGN

Towards the end of the 16th century further changes took placein the patterned fabrics of Italy, owing to the introduction of theSpanish type of dress, with its narrow folds and slashings. Thepatterns were usually small and well adapted for the short darkcoloured cloak worn at all the courts in the time of Raphael and hiscontemporaries. Differing from the preceding patterns with theirpronounced formal and continuous construction, the pattern is nowfrequently arranged as a symmetrical spotting or semi of floral forms.Some representative examples in silk and wool are given on plate 47.No. 1 has a well-distributed floral pattern with birds and animalsthat are Sicilian in character. Nos. 2, 3, and 4 are variants of thesedistinctive floral spottings.

Representative examples of the smaller velvets of this period,beautiful in technical qualities of weaving,and in the arrangement and distribution ofpattern, are given on plate 48.

The doublet of green velvet given onplate 49 has another variant of these small £patterns. This example is said to be ofEnglish manufacture of the early 17th cen-tury ; if so, the distinctive Oriental floralform and stripe show that it was probablythe work of Italian weavers, many of whomwere engaged in England during the 16thand 17th centuries.

Plate 50 is from a painting by Frans Hals(1584-1666). The child’s dress is clearlypainted from a patterned fabric, having aseme of pomegranates, probably woven on a Flemish loom.

In addition to the more sumptuous silken fabrics of the Italianlooms, many mixed fabrics of linen and wool were producedcontemporaneously at Florence, Milan, and Venice. The patternsof these, usually in blue and white, or red and white, vary con-siderably in scale, from 5 to 22 inches in width. The patterns,consisting of a of pomegranates and conventional flowers, are

distinctly Eastern in character. These fabrics, which must havebeen produced extensively in Florence and Milan, are admirable inthe ornamental detail and planning, and show considerable skill andeconomy of means in weaving.

Contemporary with these Italian fabrics, similar ones wereproduced in large quantities on the Flemish looms at Bruges, Ghent,Ypres, and other weaving centres.

Plate 51 gives a very beautiful silken robe, said to be of the

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Fig. 37.—The Vase Pattern.