Ancient Greek Yarn-Making
Kissell, Mary Lois
Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Vol.13 No.11 (1918)
Abstract
The Metropolitan Museum is fortunate in having among its Greek collections three antique ceramics of exceptional interest, since they tell in a graphic way something of textile art in Europe’s oldest nation, several centuries before Christ. As research brings to light 
more of Greek life and customs, we find a distinctive charm in their humbler crafts and industries. One, the practical, every-day textile art, supplied them with clothing and interior hangings. Only two fragments of these early fabrics remain, and they give very little information as to just how yarn was spun and cloth woven. Indeed, the story of ancient Greek textiles would be lost, had not poets of that day delighted to sing of it and artists to paint it.These poems tell of the high technical skill attained in spinning and weaving and describe many of the processes; while scenepainted vases from the potter’s hand immortalize in clay and metallic earths its varied tasks.
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