Dear Angharad, Thank you for your reply. Out of curiosity, how was the fiber analysis conducted. Was it necessary to destroy any part of the lace? Was it done entirely with a mircroscope? Was there chemical analysis involved? I am fortunate to be a volunteer in the lace collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. We have many pieces that are supposed to be 17th century. However there were such good copies made in the 19th century of the earlier laces. I am convinced that one cannot tell the old laces from the newer ones by technique, because the technique can be copied very well. So, ultimately, I think that only a knowledge of thread could be used to distinguish them. But, I have no idea what kind of analysis this would be. People often say to me, "How about carbon dating?" However, this is, I believe, expensive and involves some destruction of the lace. I think the proposal to keep some kind of file of the fiber analysis for each piece in the Powerhouse Museum that may then be compared to other pieces is a great idea and very exciting. Devon
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