RSN.755
Object name
Date made
Circa 1720-1750
Place made
Description
Circa 1720-1750 sablé beaded purse with flowers and plaited drawstrings with beaded tassels.
Content description
Circa 1720-1750 sablé beadwork purse with a white beaded ground and flowers in pinks, purples, reds, and yellows. The entire surface, which is damaged, is covered in tiny beads. The purse is made of four long, triangular quarters that have been stitched together, with two sides illustrating roses and two sides showing carnations. All sides feature flower buds, sinuous vines, and leaves. Along the top of the purse is a blue-green plaited silk thread drawstring with yellow beaded tassels. The interior is blue-green silk. All of the beadwork uses silk thread and the areas of damage reveal the base of the purse to be linen.
This small purse is embellished with tens of thousands of beads. The beads are strung together row by row and then each row of beads is couched down with a stitch between each bead.
The word sablé is given to both the beads and the technique, which involves securing these tiny glass beads with looping stitches. Sablé is French for 'covered with sand', and this technique was used to decorate a wide variety of items in France from the late 17th century through to 1789. How many workshops were involved in the production of these objects is a matter of debate. The consistent production of these four-quarter bags decorated with floral motifs over the course of decades makes it difficult to determine with precision when this object was produced.
This small purse is embellished with tens of thousands of beads. The beads are strung together row by row and then each row of beads is couched down with a stitch between each bead.
The word sablé is given to both the beads and the technique, which involves securing these tiny glass beads with looping stitches. Sablé is French for 'covered with sand', and this technique was used to decorate a wide variety of items in France from the late 17th century through to 1789. How many workshops were involved in the production of these objects is a matter of debate. The consistent production of these four-quarter bags decorated with floral motifs over the course of decades makes it difficult to determine with precision when this object was produced.
Dimensions
height: 6cm
width: 7cm
width: 7cm
Materials
Stitches
Techniques
Motifs
Catalogue number
RSN.755
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