Images(3)

Pocketbook

Date1740-1760

OriginEurope, France (probably)

MediumStraw, linen, silk, and gold

Dimensions4 1/4 in x 7 in

Credit LineGift of Mrs. Cora Ginsburg

Object number1991-495

DescriptionEnvelope-shaped pocketbook with curved, shaped flap. Pocketbook consists of thin straw splints couched to a linen ground, sewn onto a stiff inner lining. The straw has an overall embroidered design consisting of colored florals (pink, brown, green, purple, blue) and gold metalic scrolls. Green tie ribbon. Inside has single compartment lined with green silk, with gussets at the sides for opening.Label TextFiber, Fabric, and Fortune:
Straw, the dry stalks of cereal grains such as wheat and barley, was typically used for bedding, both for livestock and people. However, decorative straw work was particularly popular between 1780 and 1830. Straw stalks were split into narrow strips, called splints, which could be wrapped around lengths of thread or stitched down onto a textile.

Straw work appeared on accessories, like this pocketbook, as well as on clothing. "The European Magazine" described in 1783 that "the gentlemen's waistcoats are ribbed with straw."ProvenancePrior to 1991, Cora Ginsburg (Tarrytown, NY); 1991, given to The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation (Williamsburg, VA)