Silk shawl with a repeating pine pattern of left and right leaning fan-shaped flowered-head and cones filled with smaller 'shawl' flowers. The cream, red, dark blue and dark green silk wefts which make this pattern, are closely cropped at the back so as not to colour the white ground which is so loosely woven as to be transparent. The borders at top and bottom with a meandering stem of the same 'shawl' flowers has its ground filled with an extra weft of white silk, and its colours are restricted to cream, blue and red. They too are cropped where they cross the side borders, which have the same pattern woven in additional wrap in pinky-red, blue and yellow. The warp threads forming the borders are extended into the 5 inch latticed fringe, which is on all four sides of the shawl. Silk shawl, France, ca. 1840-1850