Fabric printing block

Textile printing is a technique for decorating fabrics that has been known for centuries. At first, patterns were printed with simple stamps with uncomplicated designs, but over time special stamps with more and more elaborate ornaments were developed. The printing blocks found in museum collections today are interesting and noteworthy monuments. With their diverse and often elaborate ornamentation, they are small works of art themselves. They are also a testimony to the development of their production technique, as well as to the changing tastes and preferences of the users of printed fabrics. The presented small stamp was used for printing central motifs on the fabric. Unlike larger stamps, which were usually made from two pieces of wood – a hard one which was covered with a pattern and a lighter one in which a handle was grooved – this one was made from a single block. It has a polygonal shape and a floral ornament made of brass pins and plates densely stuck into the wood. The design depicts a branch with multi-petaled flowers and leaves. The stamp comes from the collection of the Pommersches Landesmuseum Stettin.