Early Colcha, Wool On Wool

Item #: 181
Origin: Spanish Colonial
Media: Wool
Dimensions: 85 x 51″
Description: This early, likely late 18th C. colcha, is embroidered wool floral designs on a creamy white sabanilla wool base.  This is one of the oldest, if not the oldest, colcha in private hands for the region of New Mexico. The whole piece has been sewn onto a backing of cloth for protection of its fragile state.  This colcha has a complex bordered floral and leaf pattern circulating the piece which then frames floating elements of flower groupings with leaves and then the center is a circular framing made of flowers and leaves containing, at the very center, a corn stock in 3 phases of growth.  There are only two colors of wool here, indigo blue and a greenish brown, likely an early natural dye. The wool embroidery, called the colcha stitch, is woven on top of a sabanilla, in this case a diagonal wool woven cloth.  There has been much darning over the years to keep this piece all together.  From the looks of the wool used for the darning, I imagine that the repairs are 19th century.

Price:  On request

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