IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and media viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. Visit the IIIF page to learn more. This is a 17th Century Point de ...

In 1907 Mrs. James W. Pinchot proposed to assemble a collection of arts and crafts for the Smithsonian Institution. To start this endeavor, Mrs. Pinchot and her collector friends loaned or donated ...

Lace is paradoxical: a textile characterized by its open spaces. It performs no strictly utilitarian function; it neither cloaks the body nor warms it. However, it remained for centuries a highly ...

Whether depicting a powerful religious leader or a grande dame of society, portraits have pictured important subjects sheathed in lace for generations. Yet despite the intricate textile’s ubiquitous ...

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