Shawl

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This shawl was knit in geometric patterns with thread made of fine cashmere goat fibers, which have a diameter of 12 to 20 micrometers, as indicated by microscopic examination of the fiber. In order to withstand the knitting process and daily wear, the thread was highly twisted during its spinning and plying. The small diameter of the fiber explains the shawl's fine quality and silk texture.

European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The fifty thousand objects in the Museum's comprehensive and historically important collection of European sculpture and decorative arts reflect the development of a number of art forms in Western European countries from the early fifteenth through the early twentieth century. The holdings include sculpture in many sizes and media, woodwork and furniture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and jewelry, horological and mathematical instruments, and tapestries and textiles. Ceramics made in Asia for export to European markets and sculpture and decorative arts produced in Latin America during this period are also included among these works.

Metropolitan Museum of Art