Ensemble

In the pictureA short sleeveless man's vest is laid out. Its surface is covered in black cord applied in close parallel rows, so it looks thick and ribbed, and on both sides of the front opening run two rows of oval gold buttons, nearly twenty to a row. Outside the button rows, each side has a vertical band of red wool with swirls drawn in black cord, and lower on the sides are small knot motifs made of cord. Inside the neck and armholes a red lining and tan edging show, and an accession-number tag hangs at the neck. The two rows of buttons converge at the center and nearly touch.

BackgroundAccording to the Met's record, this ensemble consists of nine pieces, a through i, and the vest in the photograph (a) has a back length of 39.4 cm. Also listed are a jacket (b) of the same length, two garments about 94 cm long and a long sash of 252.1 cm, among others; the materials are wool, silk, cotton, leather and metal. The place-of-origin field gives no country, only the region "Northern." The records of other garments donated by Berta May Taylor in 1988 in the same number range (1988.362) mention Albanian cities such as Tirana, Durrës and Kavajë, so it very likely means northern Albania.

Puzzle tipMany pieces are black, but the cord runs vertically on the body and horizontally low on the sides, which lets you sort them. Fit the two rows of gold buttons in the center and the red lining first to set up a vertical axis, then decide left and right with the two red swirl bands. The tan edging around the armholes shows where the shoulders are, and a small white spot on the lower left of the body is another marker. 48 pieces is about right.