8606.
Piece of Silk Damask; ground, black; pattern, not easily discernible, though evidently elaborate. Italian, 14th century. 10 inches by 6-1/4 inches.
So much has damp injured this piece that its original black has
become almost brown, and its pattern is well nigh gone. In its fresh
state, however, the design, traces of which show it to have been
sketched in the country and about the time mentioned, was thrown up
satisfactorily, for it was woven in cotton from the silken ground of the
piece.
8607.
Piece of Silk Damask; ground, fawn-colour; pattern, trefoils and vine-leaves, in green. Sicilian, 14th century. 8-3/4 inches by 4-1/2 inches.
Like all the other specimens of this kind, the present one is pleasing
in its combination of those favourite colours—fawn and light green—as
well as being remarkable for the elegance with which the foliage is
made to twine about its surface; the materials, too, are thick and
lasting.
8608.
Fragment of Silk Damask; ground, dark blue; pattern (very imperfect in the specimen), an ellipsis filled in with ornamentation and topped by a floriation, out of which issue birds' necks and heads, all in lighter blue, edged with white, and two conventional wild animals in gold, but now black with tarnish. Sicilian, 14th century. 6 inches by 6 inches.
