1851 Printed silk shawls
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1851-1856 A printed ivory silk leno shawl

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The shawl spread out
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Detail of the border; the print shows more strongly on the more densely woven band.
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Detail of the border
Description
The shawl has been block printed and the silk is in a leno weave which gives stability to a gauze fabric; there is a band in a denser weave, 2¾" wide, all round the edges, 1" in from the sides and ½" from the ends, and the print shows more strongly on this than on the semi-transparent leno weave.
The polychrome flowery border is predominantly red, 13¾" deep at the ends and 14¼" at the sides. The sprays of exotic flowers are on a wine-coloured base with a wavy top edge. The printing is mitred at the corners in such a way that the joins are not immediately noticeable.
The 5" long ivory silk fringe is knotted on, and the shawl measures 67" by 68½".
It was manufactured by Towler, Campin & Co., Norwich, and the design was registered at the Public Records Office, PRO no. 82716. A shawl using this in combination with another design is at Strangers Hall Museum, Norwich, museum no. 120.988.
Printed cream silk leno shawl

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The shawl spread out
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Detail of the main border
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Detail of the edge; registration marks and the joins between the blocks can be seen.
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Detail of a motif in the gallery
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Detail of a corner of the gallery showing the awkward mitring
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Detail of a corner of the gallery showing the awkward mitring
Description
The shawl has been block printed and the silk is in a leno weave with bands all round the edges in a denser weave of silk, which are 2¾" wide, 1" in from the sides, ½" from the ends; the print shows more strongly here than on the semi-transparent leno weave.
The outer border, predominantly red, is about 4¼" wide; on its inner edge are polychrome large sprays of exotic foliage, 14¼" deep at the ends and 15" at the sides.
The field is plain with a gallery round it, 5¾" deep, and measures 28¾" by 29½",
The cream silk fringe is 4¾" long and knotted on; the shawl measures 69" by 68" (width).
It was manufactured by Towler & Campin, Norwich, and the design round the gallery was registered in 1850 at the PRO, no. 67158. A long shawl at Strangers Hall Museum, Norwich, museum no. 403.975, has this design on its own. The main border and the edge border are printed with two other separate designs put together.
Norwich manufacturers often sent shawls to be printed by the firm of Charles Swaisland at Crayford in Kent, which was renowned for its excellence in block printing. The printing here is not particularly well done, and the shawl may have been printed at the Norwich works; the layout has not been well planned and the mitred corners are messy.
Contemporary illustrations
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Detail from a fashion plate in Le Moniteur de la Mode, August 1853
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Fashion plate in Le Bon Ton, September 1856
History
Pins were placed at the corners of printing blocks so that the different colours in the design could be accurately placed; the positions of these are often visible as dots.
In the early 19th century shawl manufacturers found their designs were being copied and produced more cheaply to inferior standards, so after some pressure, the government set up a scheme in 1842 for registering designs of woven and printed shawls at the Public Records Office (PRO). Towler & Campin made use of this more than other Norwich companies, which means that some of their shawls can be accurately identified and dated and a number of them are in the Strangers Hall Museum in Norwich. Each registered design was often used in combination with others.
Shawl manufacturers Abel Towler (1795-1876) and his brother-in-law, Henry Campin (1805-1876), had a number of other partners over the years. Towler was based in Norwich and Campin was in London, listed as a merchant. They were awarded a prize medal at the Great Exhibition in 1851, for a 'Collection of Shawls and first-class Printed Goods'.