Child's Shirt

In the pictureA short-sleeved child's garment, open at the front, is laid out flat. The ground is ochre silk, and the whole body is covered with rows of small diamond-shaped flowers with stepped outlines, alternating in navy and red. The edges of the garment, the front opening, and the cuffs are followed by a band of linked V shapes in white, red, and black thread, with red sawtooth embroidery running just inside it. Between the open front edges, the V-shaped neckline on the inside of the back panel shows, and a small tag marked "A.B." is attached at the neck. The sleeves end almost at the shoulder, giving the whole garment a silhouette close to a vest, and there are stains here and there on the ground.

BackgroundThe Met's record gives India as the place of making and the 19th century as the date, and it measures 54 cm high and 43.8 cm wide. The material is silk, embroidered, and it is classified as children's clothing. It was given by Ethel Frankau in 1950 and shares the accession number series C.I.50.16 with a pair of orange silk trousers with mirror embroidery (86195) from the same gift. Small as it is, its body is filled entirely with embroidery, which suggests that care went into making it, but the record does not say on what occasions it was worn.

Puzzle tipThe small diamonds repeat at regular intervals, so the body pieces look alike. First set up the garment's outline and the two lines of the front opening with the V-shaped band and the red sawtooth border pieces, then anchor the top with the tag at the neck and the V-shaped neckline of the back panel. Fill in the body while checking the order in which the navy and red diamonds alternate along the diagonals. The red diamonds are close in color to the border, so take special care in the row just inside the border. 48 pieces suits it.