Since olden times, setting an elegant table has been a sign of distinction even though ancient orators like Plato or Tenofante in their respective symposiums or banquets, and Petronius at the Banquet of Trimalcion do not mention table-cloths or napkins.

During the Carlomagnus period, table cloths were artistically embellished with beautiful tepestries embroidered especially for very prominent persons.

Marco Rumpholt, the first chef during the middle ages on record, explains in his cuisine treaty that <<once the food is ready to be served, the dining-room table should be covered with a white cloth and with both plates and utensils in their place...>>

In Velazques' painting <<El Almuerzo>>(The Lunch), exhibited at the Museum of Budapest, the table is covered by a simple linen cloth which surely made up part of the furnishings of a small bourgeois family. Kings' and Nobles' tables were dressed with the most luxurious fabrics on which were designed skilful embroideries of the family's crest.

Today, the art of fine table linens has developed the ideal setting for any occasion ranging from breakfast to dinner: whether it's a picnic in the country or an elegant cocktail party, a simple family meal at home or a grand banquet.

EXAMPLES OF TABLE LINEN: