Border with Peacock Motif

18th-19th century

Border with Peacock Motif, 18th-19th century. Russia, 18th-19th century. Cutwork and drawnwork: linen; straight (continuous) bobbin lace (tape lace) edging; applied silk (est.) ribbon and embroidery; overall: 52.1 x 145.4 cm (20 1/2 x 57 1/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of J. H. Wade 1921.1141 This valance, a decorative drapery made for attachment at the frame of the bed, was a typical object from the dowry of a bride in eighteenth and nineteenth-century Russia. The valance, which shows a magnificent peacock flanked by temples or shrines, would have been made for the wedding night of a newlywed couple. Handmade lace for marriage dowries was produced in large quantities in Russia during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.