Samples of Madras

Madras is a gauze in which weavers of the Irvine Valley specialised in the 1800s.  They described it as 'figured muslin' and it was made on a specialist hand-loom through a process of  'cross weaving'.  A machine capable of this process was introduced at the start of the 20th century.  The semi-transparent nature of Madras made it particularly suitable for curtains and drapes.