Where does Shantung come from?

Shantung comes from China, Shandong, first documented in the 1800s.

Plate No. 079fabric

The uneven weft renders the slub texture.

First documented: 1800s
Origin: Shandong, China
Fiber: silk
Weave: plain weave, slubbed weft
Family: plain

Plate No. 079 · fabric

Shantung

Shantung is a crisp plain-weave silk whose signature is the slub: irregular thickenings in the weft yarn that ridge the surface in broken horizontal lines. The original cloth used silk from Shandong province, often from wild or semi-wild silkworms whose irregular filament made the slubs inevitable; the texture then became the point, deliberately preserved when cultivated silk took over. Shantung's dry hand and structural crispness made it a mid-century favorite for suits, cocktail dresses, and the structured wedding gown.

Illustration: a silk reeling workshop in Shandong province, baskets of wild cocoons, skeins of slubbed raw silk hung to dry, courtyard light — A silk reeling workshop in Shandong province, baskets of wild cocoons, skeins of slubbed raw silk hung to dry, courtyard light.

Named for

Named for Shandong province in northern China, the historical source of the wild and semi-wild silks that gave the cloth its texture.

Common questions

What is Shantung made of?: Shantung is a crisp plain-weave silk whose signature is the slub: irregular thickenings in the weft yarn that ridge the surface in broken horizontal lines.
Where does Shantung come from?: Shantung comes from China, Shandong, first documented in the 1800s.
What is Shantung named after?: Named for Shandong province in northern China, the historical source of the wild and semi-wild silks that gave the cloth its texture.