Huw Jones, Keeper of Industry at The Herbert with the newly reassembled and reinstalled Jacquard ribbon weaving loom. Courtesy The Herbert, Coventry

The Herbert in Coventry has reassembled its 19th century Jacquard ribbon loom after it spent three years in storage.

The loom which dates from the early 1840s was broken into 100 pieces and removed from display while a £20 million refurbishment of the museum building was carried out. This work also included extending the facilities and improving access.

Now that the work is finished, the loom is back on display as a key feature in the new covered entrance area.

The reassembly took a team from regalia manufacturers, Toye, Kenning and Spencer, ten days to complete. They had originally dismantled the loom when the museum refurbishment began. The Bedworth-based company were also instrumental in installing the loom at The Herbert back in 1977.

The reassembly process was an arduous one. Huw Jones, Keeper of Industry at The Herbert, said, “The top part of the loom is really heavy and had to be lifted in by four people with a fork-lift truck to slot it in.” Despite the hard work, it is, he said, “great to see it back again”.

Huw Jones from The Herbert with Cllr Heather Johnson with the Jacquard loom. Courtesy The Herbert, Coventry

The expertise of those from Toye, Kenning and Spencer comes from their still using two Jacquard looms of a similar age in their own production process. While the Herbert will not have their own loom working, the museum have filmed Toye, Kenning and Spencer’s looms. This footage will be shown on a screen near the newly reinstalled loom to demonstrate how the old Jacquard looms work.

Toy, Kenning and Spencer production director, Bernie Cope explained: “We still use the old looms because of the quality that comes off them. You can’t always have quality and quantity. While it’s old technology and we do have other more modern looms, the quality that comes off our two Jacquard looms makes up for the lack of speed.”

Huw Jones however compares the loom technology to modern innovations: “It is like an early computer because it is controlled by a series of cards with holes punched in them.”

The loom was used to weave ribbon. This was a major industry in Coventry from 1700 to 1860. This particular Jacquard loom was still being used until 1960 when it was given to Courtaulds to display in their museum. It could be seen there until it was given to The Herbert in the 1970s.

Councillor Heather Johnson, Cabinet Member for Community Services for Coventry City Council, said that it was fantastic that the loom was back on display and it would be an important educational resource for the city. “This is part of Coventry’s heritage and the loom is a great way to educate students learning about this industry.”

As well as weaving, other aspect of Coventry’s industrial heritage can be explored in the Herbert’s new History Gallery. This also contains exhibits from other aspects of the city’s manufacturing past with displays related to machine tools, aircraft and cars. The newly reorganised museum also houses exhibits highlighting life in Coventry from medieval times up to just after Word War II.