A bit hard to capture this well due to glare, but I've done my best--it is celluloid rather than glass in the frame, original to it, c. 1890s-1900 I believe. I love a piece of antique handmade figural lace, and I especially love things that are self-referential, and here we have both: a piece of antique handmade bobbin lace with a picture at center of a seated woman with lace-making pillow on her lap. (I've included a photo of the type of pillow used for bobbin lace making for reference in images; types and sizes vary but the essence is the same.) And so for me this feels as much like a conceptual work of art as an example of traditional lace, injecting process--and the presence of its maker--into the form. (Which takes us to Las Meninas, et al!) Based on a bit of research, I believe the lace here, which is ecru in color, is likely Dutch--and so we can think of Vermeer, too!
Frame 8" d. Lace 5 3/8" d. Celluloid rather than glass. All in very good condition, with a hook original to the frame on the reverse top for hanging. As noted, it is celluloid rather than glass covering the lace.
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