The complex traditional belief system of the Tai requires different types of ceremonies for various purposes. Rites of passages, such as weddings and funerals, are elaborate, and textiles play important roles in them. Other rituals, such as those for healing, spirit appeasement, and honoring ancestors, call for woven accoutrements for their success. Although many Tai groups are Buddhist, pre-Buddhist beliefs are still part of the lives of the Tai people, and many Tai subgroups are not Buddhist but animist, or belief in spirits.

Dr. Linda S. McIntosh, consulting curator of the Tilleke & Gibbins Textile Collection, will lead a study trip to Ratchaburi Province on January 15, 2012. The excursion will provide participants with an opportunity to learn more about Tai Yuan textiles of Central Thailand by visiting a museum and weaving centers.

Dr. Linda S. McIntosh, Consulting Curator of the Tilleke & Gibbins Textile Collection, will present a program devoted to the topic of indigo on October 13, 2011. Natural indigo has historically been an important trade item, and its use has been documented throughout the world. The word indigo is derived from the Greek word indikon and Roman word indicum, referring to India, thought to the oldest center of indigo production.

The Tilleke & Gibbins Textile Collection accessioned a large shwe chi doe hanging (h 1.6 m x w 4.7 m) in 2010. Pre-World War II examples are rarely found in the market; thus, the purchase was a rare opportunity to acquire a type of textile absent from the collection. Existing examples are housed in private and major museum collections, including the Victoria & Albert Museum, the Australian National Gallery, the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco and the Denison University of Ohio.