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NORWEGIAN L XTILE LETTER Vol. XI No. 3 May,2005 TABLET WOVEN BANDS IN NORWAY Living Tradition and Forgotten Techniques by Inger Lise Christie By og Bygd Norwegian Folk Museum Yearbook 1983-84 Volume XXX p. 55-94 Part I Translation by Katherine Larson Tablet weaving in Norway is documented by bands preserved from as early as prehistoric times. The technique of weaving with tablets has survived in home handweaving in simple form in rural communities here until recent times. But only in a little area in East Telemark has tablet we~ving been practiced uninterrupted up to the present. In the area around B0, Hedda! and Sauherad, tablet weaving has lived on, and has been utilized to make hair bands and belts for the East Telemark costume. The well-known weaver Anne Kaasene of B0 has been one of the most important bearers of tradition-one of the oldest and last who has learned the technique from her foremothers and has woven items for 1 sale on the home-handcraft market. Tablet weaver Anne Kaasene, Bo, The technique as it has been used in the most recent tradition Telemark. Photo 1962. is of a simple type, where the pattern is determined by the Norwegian Folk Museum Photo threading of the tablets, and results from a continuous turning Archive. of the tablets. Therefore there is not a lot of variation in the patterning of the different bands. In contrast, if we look at the prehistoric bands that are found in archaeological excavations here in Norway, they show great skill and imagination in utilizing the technical possibilities in tablet weaving for much more involved patterns. Similar complicated patterning is known from archaeological finds in Europe and later production in Africa and Asia. It has long been thought that the only form of the tablet technique known here in Norway in recent times has been that which we find in the Telemark bands. In work on research into bandweaving in Norway2 I have, however, come across a few preserved bands indicating that other, more involved and exciting possibilities for pattern development in tablet weaving were known. Below I shall present the types of techniques I have come across so far while registering tablet woven bands in museums, collections, and in private ownership here in Norway. But first, a little about technique and implements in general. Implements and Technique that are preserved from later times, about 4.3 x Tablets as the shed-making implements in 4.3 cm to barely 5 x 5 cm, compared to later bandweaving have more technical possibilities tablets that usually have a side of from 6 to 8 cm. than any other bandweaving equipment. A tablet Most of the tablets from the Oseberg find have is a small, thin square slab, most often made of four holes, some have six, and some have a more wood, with holes in the comers through which to irregular number. There have been a few tablets thread the warp threads. Besides wood, tablets found from city excavations recently, among could also be made of bone, horn, leather, and them a tablet from Trondheim, probably from the cardboad, earlier often of playing cards. 11th century. It is large, with sides of 6 .2 cm, and has eight holes. 4 Depending on how many Most of the registered tablets from recent times holes there are have four holes, but there are also tablets with in the tablet, six holes registered. All of these come from or how many eastern Norway. There is only one set of tablets threads are registered from western Norway, and they have threaded m two holes, one on each of two opposing sides. 5 the tablet, All the preserved tablets are made of deciduous there can be wood. Local terms for tablets [brikker] in from two to Telemark are "brekkur" and "brekker," in eight different Setesdal "spjoll." In Rogaland "spjellvev" is sheds made in used, in Vest-Agder "a brikka." In Valdres, the course of people are familiar with the expression "a a 360° turning spjola." of the tablets when they are In short, the principle of tablet weaving is that all placed on the threads threaded on one tablet twine together edge. One Tablets with six holes. Part of a set in a cord when the tablet is held on edge and belonging to Anne Kaasene, B(i}, can weave Telemark. Author's photo. turned from one edge to the next, 90°, until it has with from two been rotated one revolution. This constitutes, to more than one hundred tablets, depending on with continuous rotation, one repeat of the how wide one wants the band. pattern. At each shed that opens after a 90° turn, a weft is inserted that binds the cords of the Three-sided tablets with three holes are known, respective tablets together. (See diagram of as well as four sided with two, four, or six holes, four-hole tablets.) and five-sided, six-sided, and eight-sided with respectively five, six, and eight holes, on the The cords created from each tablet receive comers. Square tablets with two holes have different twining depending on which side of the them placed in the middle of two opposing sides, tablet (when placed on edge) the thread is and if there are six holes, the extra holes are threaded from, or if the tablet is rotated forwards placed in the same manner in addition to the four or backwards. If the tablets are arranged in pairs comer holes. towards each other, such that the threads run into the tablets from their own side, the cords in the There have only been a few finds of tablets in two tablets receive different twining, and it gives archeological excavations here in Norway. The a type of knit-like structure to the pattern. If the most important find was made in Oseberg, where direction of rotation is changed, the direction of several loose tablets and a fully prepared warp twist is changed as well, and this change creates with 52 tablets was preserved.3 The tablets from a stripe across the band. Oseberg are quite small in comparison to those 2 The pattern types in tablet weaving that are registered6 group themselves as follows: 1. With cord and knit-like structure, pattern determined by threading. 2. With cord structure and regularly changing direction of twining. 3. With knit-like structure, irregularly changing direction of twining. 4. Patterning with and without cord twining. 5. Patterning in the groundweave and Diagram ofthe four sheds that are created with continuous 90 degree with supplemental weft, brocaded. rotating in the same direction with four-holed tablets, here marked by one 6. Patterning on unpattemed color in each hole in the tablet. Notice that each color passes over two groundweave with supplemental weft, weft picks (indicated by black dots), but that on the surface they only appears to go over approximately one pick because with the twining all the brocaded. threads cover part ofeach other. After Andersen, 1967, with additions. (shed 1, shed 2, shed 3, shed 4, direction ofrotation) 1. Bands with Cord and Knit-Like Structure Executed with Four Sheds If the tablets are laid on one another, and not and Consecutive Patterning arranged pair-wise towards each other, such that The largest group of registered bands is made the threading is from the same side in all tablets with this technique, where one uses four when they are placed on edge, all the cords have different sheds, and the pattern is determined by the same direction of twining, and a more even threading the tablets with different colors. surface in cord structure is formed. It is the cord creation and knit-like or cord structure that is the typical characteristic of tablet weaving. The pattern is created on the basis of the different colors that are threaded in the holes. A multitude of variations in pattern can result from not rotating all the tablets at one time, but rotating them in groups or individually, and from varying the number of forward and backward rotations. One can also neutralize the creation of cords and weave plain weave by rotating only Belt from the East Telemark costume, Anne Kaasene, B@, 1962. Norwegian Folk Museum once forward and once backward; then the use Photo Archive. of tablets cannot be detected. There remain innumerable methods to vary the structure and The pattern is based on pairs of opposing tablets pattern that we shall not touch upon here. arranged so that the knit-like structure appears. Weaving progresses by continuous rotation, with All the barids that are registered as tablet bands a change of the direction of rotation at even from recent times here in Norway have, intervals to loosen the twist created in the warp however, cord formation as a characteristic. threads behind the tablets. It is this manner of weaving that has remained in East Telemark until today .. 3 Pattern 'i,(JTE The pattern repeat extends over four picks, a As a rule, small result of four threads in each tablet, and because bands have pattern the tablets are rotated continuously in one in zigzag design direction, the pattern is regularly repeated over along the middle of the band's length; the band and the edges are Yarn and Color distinguished by a A group of bands have a warp of homespun, color that differs Diagram naturally dyed wool yarn of a shiny, often bristly from the ofthe quality. White linen appears to a small degree, background color. most and in some cases cotton. The weft is generally Larger bands common wool yam.