"The Toilet of the Princess," circa 1690-1715

A few textiles are the collaborations of cultures living side by side, as in a gallery devoted to textiles produced in Spanishruled Mexico (where exquisite embroidery was a specialty) and South America (where descendants of the Inca had weaving skills superior to almost any on earth). Here, a Mexican shawl alternates bands of buzzy ikat weave with beguiling, friezelike scenes of people in pleasure boats or at social gatherings.

Intensifying the vividness of the cross-cultural exchange is the sheer physical diversity of the textiles: the shifting techniques and materials tend to sharpen visual perception.