Two Parts of a Curtain, 1700s. Algeria. Silk, gold, and silver on linen; embroidery; overall: 295.3 x 135.9 cm (116 1/4 x 53 1/2 in.). During the 1700s, stunning large embroidered door curtains such as these hung across doorways onto interior courtyards of multistoried residences. Light entered through their loosely woven linen ground while the reversible embroidered decoration provided beauty and privacy. Such curtains have three embroidered widths, the third missing here, joined by colorful plain silk ribbons flanking a French floral ribbon in the center.