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Hand made Tapestry using loom of High or Low Warp
They are tapestries woven with discontinuous weft. As at the previous centuries,
it is still advisable to distinguish two kinds of tapestries:
tapestries carried out on vertical loom said high warp (haute lisse), used
already by Egyptian as we can see on the picture (left hand side) found in grave
of Beni-Hassan (1700-2000 B.C), this was probably too the Homeric
loom and also the Scandinavian loom; or horizontal loom said low warp (basse
lisse) -Lisse or Lice: hence the name of licier which one gives to those which
weave these tapestries.
This kind of woven tapestries is thus subdivided in Goblins's Tapestry for
those of high warp and Beauvais & Aubusson's Tapestries for Tapestries of
low warp.
The woven Tapestry is in the origin a tapestry of high warp, be today still
a Goblins's Tapestry. It was practised in Paris since XIIIth century.
It is the haute lisse that bring Paris and France the world center
of the tapestry, such so and so well that in north and east of Europe tapestry
is said Goblin
The Haute lisse or Lice (high warp) expression
The origin of the french word Lice or Lisse (string) is dubious. The etymology
seems to reduce the first word from the Latin term licium: wire put
transversely; the expression haute lisse (high lisse) was used in nautical for
the sailing vessel and meant high aerofoil: The veils and the chechmates of the
ships were retained by shrouds (haubans - bonds of top -1138 -), ropes; To
maneuvrer the sailors went up on the highest horizontal structure of the vessel
which one called the high Lisse (as of bulwark lisses or gunwale lisse). One can
suppose that the association of the two definitions could adapt to the
mechanical movement which one must apply to the warp of a tapestry. The "lisses"
are indeed a kind of wire placed of through and which draw wire from warp, by
the top for the vertical loom (Goblin) and downwards for the horizontal loom
(Beauvais or Aubusson).
appears for the first time on March 10 year 1302; that in an addition to the
ordinances regulating the trade of Paris. These additions establish that a
discord had occurred between the sarrazinois (Sarazine tapestry manufacturers)
and another kind of manufacturers of tapestries which one called the workmen
à la besche or nostrez (ours) tapestry in this edict.
The first ones claiming that those could not and did not have the right to work
in the city of Paris until they had do the serment, like themselves, to hold and
keep all the ordinances of the guild of the manufacturers of Sarazines
tapestries, since as much the two trades was similar.
They also complained that the workmen of haute
lisse, not being organized, escaped from the payment of taxes, so that
the interests of the King suffered from that, and also interests of much
other good people, because the Masters of high-warp worked during
the night and let fear consequences in the work which was neither good nor
sufficient.
In response to this complaint, the Masters of high-warp were ordered to join
the guild of the manufacturers of Sarazines tapestries.
 Ten
of those (with the approval of an eleventh) and six of these appeared and agree
in the share of their respective trade to adhere to all the edict provisions. It
moreover was expected that the Masters of high-warp could take apprentices for
one eight years period, but not less, and on the payment of 100 money Pennies of
Paris, or smaller sum. The ordinance also ruled that they could not
work on their loom of high-warp as much only as they could see by daylight
without the assistance of a candle. In order to enforce respect of these
ordinances were named: a Master pertaining to the guild of the manufacturers of
Sarazines tapestries, or tapestry à la merche (treadle), and another
Master of high-warp, or tapestry à la beshe (broche).
The manufacturers of tapestries nostrez named in the ordinances
compiled about 1250 per Etienne Boileau, Mayor of Paris, in its book of the
Trades, coarse fabrics and other twills or shuttle are weaver of
plain and paterned fabrics to cover floors, walls and furniture. The
manufacturers of tapestries sarazines are manufacturers on loom with
treadle, as it is distinctly stated in the addition with the ordinances
quoted and summarized above. Besche is the old French word which
corresponds to the word broche. By deduction, therefore, the expression
tapisserie à la beshe (tapestry with the broche) which is stated
there is synonymous with tapestry of high-warp and this point, in connection
with the chronology of the introduction of these two techniques, can be also
regarded as very interesting and significant.
While the most obvious difference between high-warp and low-warp depends on
the vertical position of the warp of the first compared with the horizontal
position of the warp of the latter, the true one and fundamental difference
depends on the fact that low-warp has treadles and the high-warp does not have
any, and, also, that the reel of high-warp (which is called broche
-spindle- with the Goblins) is of acute form, pointed, whereas the reel, (or
flute as one calls it in Beauvais), of low-warp is blunted and is
not employed like tool.
A careful reading of the ordinances and addition, establishes that the
manufacturers of high-warp were the new ones coming in Paris, perhaps of French
Flanders, or at least men who practised a kind of weaving then new in Paris.
Certainly if the expression tapisserie à la merche used in the
addition of the ordinances (found only in the manuscript of the National
Library, man. Fr. 24069, fol. 241, and not in the manuscript of the public
records, KK 1336, fol. 145 V°) to describe the work of the sarrazinois, is a
part of the original document or was added by somebody who knew some about this
subject, then, the sarrazinois could not be weaver of carpet of the eastern
fashion, since for this kind of carpet, the warp is vertical and the loom
without treadles. It is interesting to also note that while the training period
of the guild of Sarrazinois was eight years, that of the guild of nostrez
Tapestries was only of four; also that the two guilds were limited to the
use of the wool yarn except that ostrez (the others) could employ
any material in manufacture, and thus, whereas nostrez could use the full
thread, Sarrazinois could employ the twisted threads (made with several
strands).
Aubusson's Tapestry, basic tapestry of low-warp, thus a more
economic technique in its execution, would have been established in XVIth
century in this area by makers coming from Arras. Its denomination was until the
XIXth century Arrazo Tapestry (from the town, in Flanders, named
Arras), or, tapisserie à la mesche (Tapestry with treadle) because the
weaver to operate the warp uses not only its hands over but also its feet on a
kind of treadle located below the loom. This idea will be taken up in the
Jacquard power loom. Indeed in the recording of its first patent in 1801 he
writes:
the essential movement that the workman communicates
alternatively with the foot with each treadle, is the main engine.
 
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