In Tartu thousands of textile fragments have been found in medieval cesspits, preserved due to the favourable conditions for organic materials that exist there as a result of the waterlogged conditions caused by the high level of ground water and the anaerobic environment. At the present (2011), nearly 3000 fragments from five sites have been studied according to basic textile research methods (as outlined by Walton and Eastwood 1983). Occasionally wool fibre analyses have been applied as well, so assumptions can be made about the qualities of the initial fleece and the preparation process, and thus the provenance of the wool can be established (Nahlik 1963, 229–242; Kirjavainen 2005, 134–138). A great majority of these textile pieces (96%) are woven fabrics made of wool that are small scraps, hardly bigger than a hand palm and, currently, different shades of brown in colour. According to both the technical traits and analysed wool, it seems that approximately half or even more of these textile scraps had been imported, probably from Western European textile centres (Rammo 2009a; 2010, 204). While it is possible to analyse the raw materials and thus the technology used to make these fabrics, and draw conclusions about the production process and provenance of these finds, it is harder to (re)construct the consumption phase – the earliest usage and the consumers of these scraps in Tartu.
In the present paper I shall concentrate on one exceptional type of textile – striped cloth – that among the brown scraps dazzles the researcher with relatively well-preserved visible colours and patterns (Figure 11.1). Usually the names of cloth types known from written sources cannot be related to their archaeological counterparts with ease. The striped cloth is an exception to this; it can be identified by a textile type from Flanders and England named drap rayé, strijptelaken and ray in written sources. The characteristic cloth is also recognised in numerous works of art that provide rich contextual information about the production, use and the cultural associations ascribed to it (Crowfoot et al. 2006, 52; Dahl 2009, 125). In addition to the many finds in Tartu, three fragments from Tallinn (about the excavations, see Lange and Tamm 1983) and one from Pärnu can be taken into consideration.