Mats Collection (#2)

TOMATO SOUP & TOAST TOMATO SOUP & TOAST
A tempting arrangement of tomato soup and toasted soldiers for three, with matching soup bowls, spoons and serviettes. Date: 1960s

JAPANESE DINNER 1891
Seated on tatami mats, a group of Japanese people eat at the Golden Koi temple Date: 1891

PRISON / MAT-MAKING / 1873
A convict in his cell, making mats. Date: 1873

DOOR MAT SELLER
A seller of DOOR MATS at Charing Cross, London Date: circa 1805

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Nepal, Bhaktapur, Grain drying in sun

Mat Brazier Street vendors London series title
Mat Brazier Street vendors in London (series title) The Cryes of the City of London (series title), A mat brazier who repairs seats and mats. A bundle of piping on his back

Waterproofing hulls two ships Thirteen scenes
Waterproofing the hulls of two ships Thirteen scenes with ships (series title), Two large sailing ships keeled by mats, men standing on a raft working around the ships waterproofing the hulls

Bedouin woman weaving papyrus mats 1900

Bedouin wedding series Bedouin woman weaving
Bedouin wedding series. Bedouin woman weaving papyrus mats 1900

Mats Shinichi Suzuki Japanese 1835 1919 Japan
Making Mats; Shinichi Suzuki (Japanese, 1835 - 1919); Japan; about 1873 - 1883; Hand-colored Albumen silver print

Mats Straw Shinichi Suzuki Japanese 1835 1919
Making Mats of Straw; Shinichi Suzuki (Japanese, 1835 - 1919); Japan; about 1873 - 1883; Hand-colored Albumen silver print

A Zulu Wedding, South Africa Date: circa 1930s

Traditional welcome dance, Tuvalu, Gilbert Islands, Pacific
Girls and women performing a traditional welcome dance, Tuvalu, Gilbert Islands, Pacific. Date: 1977

Scouts in Tuvalu, Gilbert Islands, Pacific
Scouts taking part in an indoor activity, Tuvalu, Gilbert Islands, Pacific Date: 1977

Kikuyu Hut - Kenya Date: 1920s

Physiotherapy equipment. These exercise balls, known by a variety of names, are used when exercising and during physiotherapy

South African woman carrying goods on her head
A south african woman, carrying her baby on her back with a wide variety of other goods balanced somewhat precariously (or so it seems to the uninitiated) on her head, including pans, rugs, mats

Street stall selling traditionally woven mats, Quito, Ecuador

Yumei Hotel, Nagasaki, Japan - traditional Japanese interior Date: circa 1920s

Advert for Beach Mats
Black and white illustrated advertisments for fashionable Beach Mats, on sale at Don, 75 Davies Street, London. 1930

Highbury Truant School, London - Mat Making
Boys at the London School Boards Highbury Truant School make mats on a loom. Date: early 1900s

Papua New Guinea - Preparing a Large Decoy Drum. Date: circa 1910s

Myanmar - Village Scene - preparing food
Myanmar - Village Scene - preparing (pounding!) food using a large pestle and mortar Date: circa 1910

Japanese porters carrying a lot of luggage including suitcases, carpets and sundry other possessions - rural Japan. Date: circa 1920s

Moslems Pray in Desert
Egyptian Moslems at prayer in the desert, with their prayer mats spread out on the sand Date: 1904

Advertisement, Swing Needle Embroidery Transfer
Advertisement, Dressing Table Mats, Swing Needle Embroidery Transfer. circa 1960s

A Japanese Koto player. A Koto is a type of Zither with 13 strings, played by plucking the strings with ivory plectrums attached to the fingers. Date: 1932

Japan - Girl practising Ikebana Flower Arrangement. Date: 1932

Japan - A girl making ceremonial tea. Date: 1932

Japanese family group - different styles of kimono and hair dressing Date: 1932

Japanese children putting their dolls to bed on a hot night
Japanese children putting their dolls to bed on a hot summer night. Date: 1932

Japan - Woman and Young Girl Play with a Kitten. The round window is an eminent feature of the Japanese style of architecture, reminding people of the elgance and refinement old Japan. Date: 1932

Blind ex-soldiers at St Dunstans Hospital Making Mats. Date: circa 1920

Boy doing high jump at athletics event
A boy doing the high jump at an athletics event. Date: circa 1930s

Wakashan hut, with men barbecuing fish, totem pole, and dried fish.. Handcolored lithograph from Friedrich Wilhelm Goedsches Complete Gallery of Peoples in True Pictures, Meissen, circa 1835-1840

Bath Characters by Edouart - mat seller
The itinerant mat seller in Bath, one of a series of Bath characters taken by the silhouette artist, Auguste Edouart in Bath between 1826-7. Date: 1827

India - Shrine at Rams Birthplace, Fyzabad
Black and white. Structure made of thatched plant material with an archway. Inside there are lamps, decorated mats, flowers and metal containers.. Part of India Box, Boswell Collection

Japan - Making reed mats on a simple frame loom
Black and white lantern slide showing Japanese men making reed mats on a simple frame loom Date: circa 1890s

Scouts singing, Tuvalu, Gilbert Islands, Pacific
Scouts (male and female) singing, Tuvalu, Gilbert Islands, Pacific. Date: 1977

Mat makers, Ceylon (Sri Lanka). Date: circa 1890s

British working party on ice, Western Front, WW1
A British working party carrying wooden platforms across a frozen canal on the Western Front during World War One. Date: circa 1916

Japanese women sorting grain
Japanese women sort, grade and winnow grain. Date: circa 1910s

Winter in the British Lines on the Somme 1917
In February 1917, when the ground was sodden with slush and snow everywhere, work had to be still done, making or capturing trenches

Two keeled sailboats, Reinier Nooms, 1650 - 1664

Two keeled sailboats, Reinier Nooms, 1650 - 1675

Olive oil

Organic artichokes

Wooden salad servers

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From London to Japan, mats weave their way into various cultures and settings. At Johns Deed & Sons, leather manufacturers in bustling New Oxford Street, the artistry is celebrated through intricate engravings. Meanwhile, a Japanese Geisha gracefully strums a Traditional Shamisen on a mat-covered floor, transporting us to the elegance of ancient traditions. In Portslade Industrial School's gymnasium, mats provide safety and comfort as young minds explore physical activities. On a tea plantation in Sri Lanka, workers meticulously weigh tea leaves on woven mats that connect them to nature's bounty. Traveling back in time to the 1970s, we encounter a mobile grinder diligently working on his craft atop a trusty mat. In Souk Waqif, Doha's vibrant marketplace, prayer they can proudly displayed at shops offering solace and spirituality. Venturing further into Morocco's bustling streets reveals an enchanting leather goods boutique adorned with colorful rugs and mats. The journey continues to Japan where traditional bathrooms and reception rooms embrace tranquility with tatami mats underfoot. Gathered in public meeting rooms or traditional hotels' reception areas adorned with Tokonoma alcoves showcasing artistic treasures; these spaces exude gracefulness thanks to carefully arranged tatami floors. Finally arriving at large Japanese hotel rooms featuring tatami flooring invites guests into an oasis of serenity amidst modernity. Tatami Rooms embody timeless interior design principles that harmonize simplicity and functionality seamlessly. Across continents and centuries alike, from merchants' advertisements in London to cultural rituals in Asia - they have proven their versatility as symbols of tradition, craftsmanship, and peacefulness.