The Marghab Linens
Lecturer: Taylor McKeown, Curator of Collections & Exhibitions, South Dakota Art Museum
Live Lecture Date: Sunday, December 13, 2026 1PM Eastern
Live Lecture Registration: November 20 – December 11, 2026 1PM Eastern
Format: Live Lecture Only
The South Dakota Art Museum is home to the most comprehensive collection of Marghab Linens in the world. Produced on the Portuguese island of Madeira from 1932 to 1978, Marghab Linens became internationally renowned for their uncompromising standards of design and craftsmanship.
Founded by South Dakota native Vera Way Marghab and her husband, Emile, the company set a new benchmark for embroidery. Their linens were crafted from the finest Irish linen and Swiss Margandie®, embellished with specially dyed threads, and embroidered by Madeira’s most skilled artisans. Beloved by royalty, diplomats, and admirers of fine handwork, Marghab Linens were celebrated as the pinnacle of elegance and precision.
In 1970, Vera Way Marghab donated nearly 800 linens to the South Dakota Art Museum, with additional gifts over the next decades. Today, the collection encompasses more than 300 patterns and nearly 2,800 pieces, preserving the story of a South Dakota native who, with her husband, built one of the finest embroidery houses in the world.
This lecture will explore the history of the company, its founders, makers, and the extraordinary journey of the Marghab Collection to a Museum located on the Great Plains.
