c.1900 - Hand-Blocked Vegetable Dye Batik

There is vintage and then there's VINTAGE! 40 years is the defining age for true "vintage". When a fabric is well over 100 years old, well, you have something else entirely (an actual antique). As we are in perpetual "search mode", we come across quite a few extraordinary pieces of fabric. The beauty on this page came to us through a fellow U.S. collector who had it dated to the very early 1900s or before and originating from the general area of India. The artwork is created using all natural vegetable-based dyes and hand printed with interlocking wooden pattern blocks. The technique is known as batik. For us, the beauty of a real batik is the imperfections created by the layering blocks and natural inky bleed of the dyes. Perfectly imperfect. 

As the inks have aged and faded over time, one can really notice the darker patches where the printing blocks overlapped.

Even the underside of the printed fabric is amazing looking, with the century-old natural dyes showing through.

We've had this incredible piece for some time now and can't quite decide what to make with it. We'd love to hear your suggestions!