Ragmats are hardwearing rugs made out of rags cut into strips and poked through a hessian or harn backing material. They were very popular in the early to mid 1900s, especially in the mining homes of the North East.
Ragmats were always made on a wooden frame and could be of hooky or proggy type.
A hooky mat is made with the right side of the mat facing, pulling through long strips of material about 1/2" [1.5cms] wide, with a hook designed for the purpose.
A proggy mat is made with the wrong side of the mat facing. The short pieces of rug 1/2" [1.5cms] wide and approx. 1 1/2" [4cms] long are pulled through the harn to make the pattern. The finished mat leaves a pile to be trimmed.
Both hooked and prodded methods of matmaking are known as far apart as Egypt and Scandinavia. The craft seems to have developed simultaneously in Britain and America, the earliest known British example dating back to about 1840.
Beamish has some 400 examples in its collections.
Number of Items Found = 11
