The last week has brought some very different and varied items to the TRC. While we are continuing cataloguing the (vast) collection of textiles from the 20th century that were recently given to the TRC by Pepin van Rooijen (Amsterdam), we had some other items come in that we thought you might like to know about.
Detail of Cambodian silver thread textile, mid-20th century. TRC 2017.2572 2.A Cambodian silver textile with a Dutch connection (TRC 2017.2572)
This is a another textile with a royal connection! Some years ago we were given an early 19th century lace shawl once owned by the Dutch queen, Anna Pavlovna (TRC 2014.0831). Now we have been given a length of purple with silver thread cloth that was given to Mrs. Eygenstein, Amsterdam by the Cambodian prince, Norodom Sondeth, a cousin to the then king, Norodom Sihanouk (1922-2012) and at that time the Cambodian Minister of Foreign Affairs. The textile was given as a 'thank you' to Mrs. Eygenstein following his stay in The Netherlands in 1952.
Mrs. Eygenstein was the translator for the prince and during his visit helped him in purchasing film and still cameras (a Hasselblad), as well as a motor bike (which he later crashed). The Eygenstein family and the prince stayed in contact for some years and he also sent a letter expressing his concern and regret for the Dutch people during the devastating floods of 1953 that killed hundreds of people, especially in Zeeland in the southern part of the country. They then lost contact, but in 1970's Mrs. Eygenstein tried to reach him again, but heard that he along with other, lesser members of the Cambodian royal family had been murdered by the Khmer Rouge, the communist group that came to power in 1975 under the command of Pol Pot.
The silver textile will be on display at the TRC in September as part of the Asia Year celebrations in Leiden. We would like to thank Mrs. Eygenstein's daughter, Mrs. Corretje Eijgenstein, for so very kindly giving this and other Asian textiles to the TRC. In particular she also gave a very large felt from Kyrgyzstan, which will be on display in the TRC Gallery as part of its Central Asian exhibition that opens on the 12th September.
Pair of Ethiopian trousers with embroidered legs, second half 20th century. TRC 2017.2570.Ethiopian embroidered trousers (TRC 2017.2567- 2017.2570)
On the same day that we were given the Cambodian and Central Asian textiles the TRC also acquired four pairs of men's trousers from Ethiopia. These date to the latter half of the 20th century and are associated with the Amhara people, from the northern and central highlands of the country.
Three of the trousers are made from narrow bands of locally woven cotton and they have been embroidered with circles, zig-zags and interlacing knots using various stitches, including chain stitch. The fourth pair is made from black machine woven cloth and embroidered using machine produced chain stitch. The TRC is slowly building up its collection of African textiles and garments, and these trousers add a new dimension to our holdings.
Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood, 1st July 2017
