Searching for ancient nettle textiles in Europe

For several years we have been searching for historical evidence of a complete nettle textile, made locally in Europe but have not yet found any. A few years ago we thought that this would finally happen when the opportunity arose to analyze a famous so called "nettle sheet" from Denmark. The analysis was done using the international standard ISO 20706-1:2019 but it turned out to be made of hemp or possibly hops. Yes, of course it was a disappointment but it also needs to be clarified because there are several reasons why a large number of nettle textiles are said to have been made in Scandinavia.

On-and-off during the late 18th through early 20th centuries, both hemp and hop were included in the Urticaceae, and not until the mid-20th century were they assigned to their own family Cannabaceae. For this reason, hemp and hop were at times called nettles, as seen in Matthews’ Textile fibers a frequently cited reference dealing with the morphology of plant fibers. The original source, a brief mention by an Italian traveler named Sargoan, claimed that nettles in Sweden were called “Swedish hemp” and were grown in large quantities during the 19th century to make sails. In fact, there is no historical proof of nettle cultivation in Sweden but this source has been repeatedly cited. In contrast, both hop and especially hemp was extensively grown in the countryside so in this light, the Italian source must be considered a taxonomic misunderstanding.

Another explanation for the perception that a lot of nettle textiles were produced is the late commercial ramie, also a nettle species imported into Europe in the form of either bast fiber ribbons, called China grass or as a fine, muslin-like woven fabric. The imported fiber ribbons were processed and spun into yarns in Europe, both in households and in German factories 1723. In the first recorded commercial attempt to manufacture European nettle textiles, the fibers was blended with imported ramie fibers and before and during this period, ramie fabrics were given the trade name “nettle cloth” in commercial documents. The term originated in the 18th century when imports of ramie expanded and “nettle cloth” could as well include thin fabrics made of either cotton, silk or their blends. Eighteenth century Swedish trade regulations prohibited the import of “nettle cloth” to promote the use of domestic materils. That said, a historical nettle cloth was not made from locally collected nettles.

If you want to read more about this find, the article is available in the journal TEXTILE https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14759756.2024.2439707

Or contact us and we will be happy to share it with you!