Selvage width strip of tightly-woven wool fabric in light purple, with a white stripe woven into the selvage. Both selvages intact; a strip has been cut off one cut end.. Marked on white paper seal glued to fabric: "114/100 (/) 1.47 (/) Roubaix (/) Fr."
Roubaix was the premier wool-weaving center in France; producing fine fabrics for both the domestic and export markets. It is likely that this group of selvage width strips of wool were all collected by a US Consular officer and sent back to the Dept. of Commerce as an example of the quality of the competition American woolen manufacturers faced in products from Roubaix.
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.