The word Denim stems from this fabric. It was woven in Nimes, France and came to be known as Toile de Nimes, or fabric of Nimes; Denim.
Circa 1940 dark blue and aged white. Originally used as a mattress stuffed with feathers that has been opened up and feathers let out. This textile has little metal " air holes" for the mattress to breathe, Heavy weight cotton with a twill weave.
 
The word 'ticking' is derived from the Latin word for case, 'Tica.' The fabric came to be known as 'denim,' as Nimes, France was one of the great producers of this ticking fabric. Ticking fabric was used for creating mattresses, as the European bedding system of old consisted of many layers of textiles - the ones at the bottom were stuffed with straw and fodder and topped with a dense denim (ticking) that was stuffed with feathers for the top layers.