Cotton blanket samples (3);manufactured by important Netherlands textile firm, Van Heek & Co., in Enschede, Netherlands, for the African market. Label: “American Consulate at Mombasa, B.E.A. Trade opportunity No. 150 of July 28, 1917. Sample No. 6- Cotton blankets”.
3 rectangular swatches of plaid cotton blankets. All have “Van Heek & Co. Enschede” tags. On the tag is a peacock with ornate decorating around it. Colors: Plaid, one piece is predominantly grey shades, another in bright greens, last one in brown shades, with yellow, red, black and blue. Each stitched at one end with yellow string. Each has original paper tag. The three samples are stapled together.
An envelope found with the Mombasa textile group reads: "Department of Commerce, Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce, Washington. 93881 (1917), Mombasa Textiles Brit. Manuf. CR 260 1917 FTO25764" (or FTO625764?) This is the Consular Report associated with this textile sample. At the time of this correspondence, Mombasa was in British East Africa.
Consular Collection: Part of collection of samples acquired by US Consuls overseas between about 1898 and 1918, in the interests of promoting US trade and business opportunities; which was transferred by the Dept. of Commerce in the 1920s-30s.