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by Kary Pardy

Ancient Art: Unraveling the Art of Knitting
nitting is a craft that is in the asked participants to complete a hat, a
middle of a revival. Creating pair of gloves or stockings, a garment,
Kwarm hats, scarves, wraps, and a knitted carpet.
sweaters, and mittens is currently a Even though the mechanical
fashionable pastime for people of all knitting machine was invented in
ages, and skilled knitters can create art 1589, the majority of knitwear was not
with their complex stitches and colors. factory produced until steam-powered
When you ask people today what machines made bulk operations
knitting is to them, you’re likely to get possible, and the divergence between
answers like “it’s a soothing activity,” individual laborers and shops
“something to do with my hands,” or increased even further – by the 19th
“a way to create gifts for those I love.” century most knitwear was factory
If you like knitting now and you are produced and hand-knitting became
considering it as a collecting interest, the realm of ladies of leisure who
I’m here to tell you that knitting is picked up needlework crafts as a
much more than a cathartic pastime. pastime, a more recognizable pattern
It’s an innovation that has been in today’s world.
around for thousands of years and
remains largely unchanged. Knitwear
is also a fascinating direction to take Collecting Knits
Are you a knitter or does the
your textile collection. practice’s ancient history draw you in?
First, let’s look at what knitting is
and how it technically compares to its Fortunately, there are lots of collecting
directions you can take. Whether you
other cloth art sister, weaving. Knitting focus on tools (knitting needles, cases
is the manipulation of a thread to form for knitting needles, knitting sheaths,
loops and stitches that run together guards, yarn holders, skein winders,
consecutively to make a cloth. Weaving scissors, and measurement tools, etc.) or
involves interlacing two strands together In a trade that was largely male in the Middle Ages, paintings of the collect knitwear fashions through the
to make a cloth. Though similar, we’re Madonna knitting (particularly with an advanced, multi-needle round years, there are lots of options for you
going to focus on knitting and it’s technique!) stand out and speak to the high value placed on the skill. and the field is not heavily saturated.
strength – knitting can be 3D. The Buxtehude Altar, Master Bertram, ca. 1400 There’s much more to learn
Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
and explore.
History Let’s start with knitting tools and the most obvious, knitting nee-
Knitting has its origins in Ancient Egypt and China, and amazingly, dles. Early needles were called “wires” or “pins,” and while the function
ancient examples are structurally unchanged from the knitting that we was the same, they were simplistic compared to modern needles that
do today. Anthropologists surmise that knitting was invented because have evolved for comfort and ease. These metal pieces were cheaply
of something that seems simple – a sock. More specifically, humans made and can add a bit of history and folk appeal to your collection,
needed a way to create a cloth that could wrap around feet, and do so but won’t add much beauty. You will start to see finer knitting needle
while accommodating different shapes and sizes. With knitting, you designs during the Victorian era, when people, mainly middle to upper-
could create something that surrounded the entire foot and stretched as class women, could afford such luxuries. Keep an eye out for silver,
needed, and thus the knit sock was born and we never looked back. bone/ivory, whalebone, and tortoiseshell needles, sometimes with ster-
Muslim craftsmen brought knitting to Europe in the 12th and 13th ling accents or guards. These attractive options traded function for
centuries where it appears it was held in high regard; several quality knit beauty; they did not have the same fine gauge as steel wires and poor
items were found in tombs and church treasuries across Spain. It spread people knitting for a living continued to use the more agile option.
to the rest of Europe with Christianity and was considered a holy
enough craft that sometimes you can spot the Virgin Mary knitting in
Middle Age paintings. Knitwear was the primary fabric for sporting
Mary was the last woman to be praised for knitting for a long time. activities in the 1920s, but with cheaper
As knitting gained popularity in the 15th and 16th centuries, it took on alternatives such as factory-produced
two sectors: peasant men and women knitting for an income or sweatshirts and tracksuits gained traction,
clothing for their families, or fine luxury knitting, which was strictly the knitwear transitioned to the realm of
low impact, high-end sports whose
purview of men. Knitting schools helped poor men break out of poverty, users could afford ‘fancier’ knit
and knitting guilds offered aspiring knitters a reliable and in-demand garments. Knitwear also transitioned
trade if they could withstand six years of training. Hopefuls spent three to smart casual clothing, which is where we
years as apprentices and three as journeymen, ideally traveling to learn most commonly see it today.
new patterns and techniques. The final exam lasted thirteen weeks and Courtesy of HoneyCombPatterns, Etsy.

36 Journal of Antiques and Collectibles