A review of The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin (Winter
2010), “Cochineal Red: The Art History of a Color,” 48 pages, by
Elena Phipps Textile history. . . Yawn, right? Listen to this
excerpt from Elena Phipps,The same physical qualities that make
each textile unique and give it beauty—fiber, dye, weave
structure, texture, pattern, and design—also give it historical
relevance and locate it in a specific time and place. Designs
that originate in one culture may be adapted to suit other
purposes in another. Some fibers are found only in one
particular region; others have been traded across the globe.
Artisans in one area may spin yarns in one direction while their
neighbors spin in the opposite. Each textile thus carries the
cultural signature of the people created it. (2) Thus, it takes
a unique training to be literate in textile history and Phipps
provides us with a fascinating translation for red textiles in
the Early Modern era. This quote explains, very neatly, the
purpose and relevance of her field to