Fragment of a Band with Vines and Leaves

1600s

Fragment of a Band with Vines and Leaves, 1600s. Italy, 17th century. Needle lace, filet/lacis (knotted ground and darned in two directions); bleached linen (est.); overall: 12.7 x 64.8 cm (5 x 25 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, The Frances McIntosh Sherwin Collection 1936.223 A scrolling vine with budding vegetation or a tendril is a recurring pattern in needle lace. The frequent use of the motif, adapted in lace from different centuries and regions, suggests that it was found in a pattern book. Books of patterns for lace making and other needlework were aimed at well-to-do women and girls to encourage domestic virtue.