A Sampling of Armenian Embroideries From the Collection Of The Armenian Museum Of America

In a sense, textiles are a metaphor for the Armenian experience, with lives woven together in patterns that will inevitably change but are captured in the moment through a textile, photograph or other artifact. The homes and homeland can be lost but the culture still survives through the textiles carried by immigrants or created in the diaspora to recapture that homeland. 

The Armenian Museum houses the most extensive collection of Armenian textiles in North America, donated by hundreds of families and representing many regions. These families have entrusted us with their heirlooms, their legacies, and the museum has mounted many exhibits highlighting these and other Armenian arts. Scholars and researchers seeking to study Armenian textiles have used our collections for academic papers. Our exhibits for the general public share our collections with the public, the American audience and younger generations of Armenians. 

The five pieces on display are a sampling of some of the heirloom regional embroideries in the collection. Each was donated by a family so that the textile can retell a story of  their creators, the time, skill, and effort that crafted these pieces. These textiles are still present today, fulfilling the purpose of making tangible that which is lost to time, those who were lost, and those who survived and carried Armenia in their hearts and hands.

Please click through the slideshow to see just a few samples from our collection of over 3,000 textiles as curated by Susan Lind-Sinanian.

Please hover cursor over images as you click through for caption.