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Thomas J. Watson Library

The Libraries of The Metropolitan Museum of Art

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Filed under: Selected purchases with funds provided by Friends Of Thomas J. Watson Library

Serviettes and how to Fold Them

Serviettes and how to Fold Them

Belfast: Robinson & Cleaver, 1890’s.

Watson Library Special Collections: TX879 .S48 1890

Complementing the Museum’s 2010 exhibition, Vienna Circa 1780: an Imperial Silver Service Rediscovered featuring napkin folding designs, this catalogue from linen manufacturer Robinson & Cleaver, provides a nineteenth-century take on elegant napkin folding.

As a furnisher of linens to the royal family, Robinson & Cleaver represented excellence in Irish linen, and produced everything from damask to lace goods.  Focusing solely on serviettes, the catalog includes diagrams and step-by-step instructions on how to create napkin folding designs including the “Fan,” “Water Lily,” “Cardinal’s Hat,” “Greek Cross” and “Collegiate.”