Silk/Rayon Velvet

History

Velvet and Cashmere wool originated in Kashmir. Traditionally, velvet is associated with nobility.
Velvet was introduced in Baghdad during the rule of Harun al-Rashid by Kashmiri merchants.
Velvet was introduced in Al-Andalus by Ziryab. In the Mamluk era, Cairo was the world's largest
producer of Velvet. Much of it was exported to Venice, Al-Andalus and the Mali Empire.
Musa I of Mali, the ruler of the Mali Empire, visited Cairo on his pilgrimage to Mecca. Many Arab
velvet-makers accompanied him back to Timbuktu. Later Ibn Battuta mentions how
Suleyman (mansa) the ruler of Mali wore a locally produced complete crimson Velvet caftan
on Eid. During the reign of Mehmed II, assistant cooks wore blue coloured dresses
(câme-i kebûd), conical hats (külâh) and baggy trousers (çaksir) made from Bursa velvet.

The art of velvet-weaving probably originated in medieval Kashmir around the beginning of the
fourteenth century. King Richard II of England directed in his will that his body should be clothed in
velveto in 1399.

The earliest sources of European artistic velvets were Lucca, Genoa, Florence and Venice, and
Genoa continues to send out rich velvet textures. Somewhat later the art was taken up by Flemish
weavers, and in the 16th century Bruges attained a reputation for velvets that were not inferior to
those of the great Italian cities.