Questions about this textile - antique Victorian 'kirking" Paisley shawl

Okay I think I've answered my own question. Here's a couple of images from: http://www.victoriana.com/Shawls/paisley-shawl.html
It looks like folded into a square, and then one corner folded back diagonally to cover the shoulders.

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The article states:

Square shawls were folded in triangles with a top flap just slightly turned over, whilst the large rectangles could be folded into two and caught at the front with a brooch and the full splendour of the shawl splayed out over the crinoline​

And more information and images here: https://library.unh.edu/museum/exhibits/daisys-paisleys

From the above site.

The square shawl was usually worn on the diagonal and called a "handkerchief" shawl. It was the predominant style before the introduction of the crinoline dress of 1840, when the longer shawl was preferred.

Plaid shawl
This example of the long shawl or plaid was the more popular style of shawl after 1840. Plaids are generally twice as long as they are wide and are worn doubled over and "square around the shoulders." (Reilly and Ames, The Paisley Pattern)
​
The lack of symmetry of the pattern when worn like this, bothers me!
 
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this is so chock full of interesting information!!

so, I have a question as to how we can best find this information in the future, and/or could it be added it to our Victorian section of our timeline, maybe???
 
that's a great idea, Ruth! plus, lately I have been adding tags to informative threads to (theoretically) help with search results, too. not sure that it does one bit of difference in reality, but the idea of tagging to improve results is a good one...
 
pastperfect2 said:
I fond this online while ago. It's the development of the boteh ( aka Paisley) shapes. I am not sure how accurate these dates are. View attachment 169287
Click to expand...
A version of this is also shown in the Victoriana article above, which states:

Motif Development

The earliest design on Kashmir seventeenth and eighteenth century shawls was a single flowering plant complete with roots, inspired by English herbals (books with plant illustrations) which reached the Mughal court during the seventeenth century. This design gradually developed into an upright spray of flowers, and by around 1800 became the stylized cone-shaped motif known as the boteh, which we now tend to call the Paisley pine. The shape of the motif changed over the decades, from a small squat cone to a very elongated curve.

There are many theories about the boteh or pine motif; Paisley Museum's explanation seems perhaps the most logical. The pattern can be traced back to ancient Babylon, where a tear-drop shape was used as a symbol to represent the growing shoot of a date palm. The palm provided food, drink, clothing (woven fibers) and shelter, and so became regarded as the ‘Tree of Life', with its growing shoot being gradually recognized as a fertility symbol
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So fascinating!
 
One way of wearing these huge rectangular shawls was to fold it in half to make square then fold the square diagonally to make a triangle, giving the wearer 4 layers of wool on a cold winter day. It was much easier to get the warm layers necessary over a big skirt or a crinoline with a shawl than a coat. And something one could continue to wear indoors since insulation as we know it didn't really exist , and central heating was unknown!
Men wore shawls too - darker, more subdued tones and simpler stripes. Abraham Lincoln was a fan of the shawl and seemed to prefer it to an overcoat.

Paisleys came in a wide range of colors. I was told many years ago by a specialist dealer in them that the black centers and red colors were the most common. To her at least, the centers in colors such as blues, yellow and cream were more desirable.
 
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