POWERHOUSE COLLECTION

Notes

This shawl was part of a collection of textiles given to Sydney College of Advanced Education (CAE) by members of staff who had travelled overseas and collected pieces they felt were appropriate to the CAE courses. The English word "shawl" is derived from the Persian "shal", originally denoting a class of woven fabric rather than a particular article of dress. In traditional Indo-Persion usage shal could equally well apply to a scarf, a turban, a mantle or even a coverlet, the distinguishing feature being that the material was fine wool or some other kind of animal fleece. Shawls became increasingly popular in Europe during the late 18th century when travellers, East India Company employees and civil servants began bringing them home from India. Although originally part of an Indian man's costume, in Europe shawls quickly became a sought after accessory for women. In France, Empress Josephine became an avid collector after receiving a gift of Indian shawls from Napoleon upon his return from his Egyptian campaign of 1798. Images of the Empress and other French society ladies wearing these richly coloured shawls helped popularise the fashion in France and England. Demand soon outstripped supply, despite the high prices such shawls commanded. By the mid 1860s, the decline of the shawl's popularity had begun, although production still continued for some years. By 1885, shawls were no longer fashionable, destroyed by an over-supply of much cheaper European versions made on the newly introduced jacquard loom, and later printed shawls. [see 'From Kashmir to Paisley: the shawl trade and the hundred year fashion' by Christina Sumner in "The Australian Antique Collection" , Jan-June 1993 and "The Kashmir Shawl" by John Irwin, Victoria and Albert Museum, 1973]