A vintage linen tablecloth is a combination of charm and nostalgia. Linen is a wonderful, multi-purpose fabric. Made from the fiber of the lovely, yet modest, flax plant(Linum usitatissimum). This textile has been prized since ancient times.
EBay offers a large selection of unique home accessories. You can sort through the selection according to price or latest listings. Click through any image for more tantalizing choices:
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 Vintage IRISH LINEN DOUBLE DAMASK Tablecloth 89x174  US $475.00
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 Vintage MONOGRAM IRISH LINEN DAMASK Tablecloth 62x156 US $375.00
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 A Vintage IRISH LINEN DOUBLE DAMASK Tablecloth 143x71 US $350.00
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 VTG LINEN TABLECLOTH ARMY NAVY FILET LACE EMBROIDERY US $349.99
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 VTG LINEN TABLECLOTH HEAVILY EMBROIDERED NEEDLELACE US $329.99
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 Vintage IRISH LINEN DOUBLE DAMASK Tablecloth 140x69 US $298.00
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 Vintage MONOGRAM IRISH LINEN DAMASK Tablecloth 131X61 US $275.00
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 Vintage MADEIRA CUTWORK LINEN TABLECLOTH 60 x 90 NR US $273.85
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 Vintage MADEIRA CUTWORK LINEN TABLECLOTH 60 x 80 NR US $256.60
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Although production of this fabric is labor intensive, it remains popular. In addition to its use for home accessories, it is valued as a sturdy, cool choice for hot weather clothing.
The downside is the wrinkle factor. Whether for the home or the body, to look its best, you'' need to pull out the iron. On top of that, don't expect this fabric to behave like permanent press. It won't take long for your outfit to lose its "freshly pressed" look. But, that's just the nature of this weave. For clothing especially, the comfort factor is worth it.
To be sure a fabric is truly linen, check the label. Other fabrics, such as cotton or hemp, are sometimes mistakenly referred to as linen. Although the weave may be similar, only textiles made from the flax plant are truly linen.
In fact, the information below, loosely refers to hemp as linen. The time-line of production that follows is adapted from a book about textiles, written in 1912. (Note: the language has been slightly updated.)
The History of Linen
Linen, the general term for the material spun from flax or hemp, predates existing records belonging to the earliest days of the prehistoric ages. Traces have been found in the villages of the Lake Dwellers and in other parts of the world where ruins revealed the remnants of fabrics.
The Finns introduced flax into North Europe. The West Aryans brought it to Western Europe and the East Aryans to India.
In ancient Europe the priest was the only one to wear linen on a regular basis. Frequent references to linen are found in the Bible to show the respect it held. According to Genesis, hail destroyed the flax and barley.
Herodotus referred to it as an article of “Egyptian export.” The wrapping of most of the mummies, some of which are three thousand to four thousand years old, is of linen. In Homer, the mother of Nausicaa, is depicted as spinning purple fabrics at early dawn by the hearth.
The garments of the Hebrew, Egyptian, Greek, and Roman priests were often made of fine linen. The Asian region of Bengal cultivated flax. The inhabitants spun and wove it into linen early in ancient history, as did the ancient Thracians.
In mediaeval times Italy and Spain and France were celebrated for their linen fabrics. Charlemagne in the eighth century A.D., like many of that era wore linen underwear. The Moors of Spain brought the industry to a state of high perfection and exported their fine linen to Constantinople and India.
Flanders, Brabant, some of the German towns, and France were making linen fabrics by the eleventh century. Before 1250 Flanders had begun extensively exporting the textile to England. Ypres, which as early as 960 was one of the seats of the linen industry, gave us the word "diaper," or cloth of Ypres. At the time this represented fine quality manufacture.
In 1394 the King of France sent the fine linen of Rheims as a ransom to the Sultan for some noblemen who had fallen into his subjects' hands. The famous Bayeux tapestry is made from a linen body with designs in wool.
Among the Anglo-Saxons linen and wool were both spun and woven. History mentions the skill of the daughters of Edward the Elder. Fine linen was made in Sussex and Wiltshire as early as 1253. In London, in the year 1386, a guild of linen weavers was organized.
The linen industry, however, did not flourish in England as it did in mainland Europe. Thus, in 1677 it was proposed to establish spinning schools as existed in Germany. As many as 200 girls, as young as six years old, were under the supervision of a woman on a podium. She directed the pupils and tapped with a long white wand any child who neglected her work. When this was not adequate, she rang a bell, and the offending girl
was taken away and whipped.
Irish linen weaving began in the eleventh century, but it received its great impetus from Louis Crommelin. He had been driven from France by the recall of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, which instituted religious persecution. This period began England's supremacy in the textile industry. The religious intolerance that the decree entailed drove three hundred thousand of the best French artisans from their native country. It was not until 1725 that machinery was used in Irish weaving. Flax was not spun by machinery until 1828.
Linen production started in Scotland, during the reign of Charles L and by 1688 it had become an important Scottish industry. This raised the apprehensions of the English weavers. The Scotch packmen, who went into England in 1684 to sell goods, were sometimes whipped as villains. They were required to produce a bond that they would abandon the trade.
Linen was also one of the Puritan domestic industries. Linsey-woolsey gave its name jointly to a fabric composed both of flax and wool. Linen was never successfully woven in America, except for the coarser forms used for towels, curtains, etc.
Taken from:
The Story of Textiles: A Bird’s-Eye View of the History of the Beginning and the Growth of the Industry by Which Mankind is Clothed
By Perry Walton (1865-1941)
Published 1912, by John S. Lawrence
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