Sample of silk plush faux seal fur in dark brown; 1884; Huddersfield, England. Woven fabric with a plain weave cotton back and long straight silk pile surface, pressed flat to imitate seal fur. Double woven, two pieces face to face sharing the pile warp, and then slit apart as they come from the loom. Dyed in imitation of seal fur. Accompanying documentation in the accession folder reads: "Made in Huddersfield, England. Made on looms specially designed for the purpose and are made two pieces at a time; there are three warps used in the making, two of cotton and one of silk or mohair according to the goods. Cotton makes the body of the cloth firmer and more suited to the purpose than so that the inferior material is not used on the score of economy alone." "Specimens of manufactures, all designed in imitation of the wool, or fur, or hair of those animals whose natural skins have been used from the earliest times as a means of clothing; for which their great warmth has made them especially adapted. / Thus the sheep, goat, camel, buffalo, bear, fox, seal, beaver, otter, and manyothers have been laid under contribution to supply those wants which the rigors of climate rendered necessary. / The great beauty as well as comfort of many of these furs and skins have always been sought after, but their cost and the difficulty of obtaining them have precluded the possibility of their possession, by any but the wealthier classes. / Human ingenuity has therefore been taxed to rpovide something which should as near as possible resemble both in appearance and comfort these much valued articles. / This has been accomplished, and the various imitations of furs, skins, etc. now not only nearly equal the original in point of appearance, but actually surpass them in point of durability, while the comparatively low price at which they can be produced places them within the reach of everyone." From a group of 16 European-made faux furs donated by importer H. Herrman Sternbach & Co., NYC, in 1884.