Our tenth advent calendar post is a sudarium from an unknown Swedish church. The top of the sudarium is made from a black velvet fabric, and is covered with gold spangles, pearls and gold thread embroideries. Colourful silk bands are attached around the top.
Possibly a work by the Birtgittin nuns from Vadstena.
The sudarium is dated to 15th century.
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
Our ninth advent calendar post is a mitre from Linköping cathedral, Sweden. The mitre is covered with embroidery and enamelled plates with different saint on them. But the mitre is also covered with small pearls. They are really small. Some are not more then 2,5 mm in diameter.
Over time a lot of embroideries, from this period of time, have over time lost the majority of their pearls. But this lovely mitre have still got some left.
The mitre is dated to 1350- 1490 AD.
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
Our eight advent calendar post is an embroidery from Fogdö church, Sweden. Made in long armed cross stitch. Wool on linen. But today we focus on the colours. Or rather the lack of colours. Some dyes fade quicker then others. The pinkish purple colour on this embroidery have faded a lot. But on the backside one can get a feel for the original colour.
We don’t know what kind of pigment that was used to dye this pinkish purple colour.
The embroidery is dated late 15th century.
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
Our seventh advent calendar post is, technically speaking, not a textile any more. But it used to be. In 1361 the bodies of the fallen from The Battle of Wisby was buried outside of the city of Visby on Gotland, Sweden. The med were buried in their armors and clothes as they wore that day, 27th of July 1361. The textiles have after 569 years in the ground gone missing. But at some places where the textile have been in close contact with the metal from the armors, the textile have become metallized after so long time in contact with the metal.
This piece of amour might give us an indication on where on the body the textile were used. If the textile imprint in placed on the inside of a lamella from a coat of plates, one can assume that the textile have been part of some sort of clothing on that person. Sometimes it’s even possible to tell the weaving technique and even the fiber content.
The lamella with textile is dated to 27th of July 1361.
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
Our sixth advent calendar post is a silk band/ ribbon. The warp contains of two plied silk threads in red, white and blue. The weft is a red silk thread, most likely the same kind of thread as in the warp. Possibly woven with a rigid heddle.
The band is part of a cope from Vallentuna church, Sweden.
The cope is dated to mid- late 15th century.
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
Our fifth advent calendar post is a silk embroidery. Made in split stitch with metal thread decorations.
The embroidery is part of a a frontlet from Herrestad church, Sweden. The embroidery have been made by the nuns from Vadstena abbey. Vadstena abbey was founded by Saint Bridget.
The frontlet is dated to 15th century.
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
Our fourth advent calendar post is a purse made out of brownish/ purpleish silk velvet with metal band decoration. It’s lined with red leather. Draw string is made out of blue silk.
The purse have been used as a reliquary bag and contains small hard objects wrapped in fabric and with notes of parchment. Possibly bones from saint/s. We have no idea what saint or saints.
The purse is dated to 1350-1500 AD,
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
Our third advent calendar post is piece of a decorative weave from the Oseberg burial, Norway.
The textile is made out of wool. We are not 100% sure about the fibre content of the warp, we suspect linen.
The ship, from where the textile was found, was built 820 AD and the grave was covered 834 AD. The ship was covered with clayey soil. This has protected the grave as clay-rich soil is very low in oxygen.
Now in the collections of Kulturhistorisk museum, Oslo, Norway.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
Our second advent calendar post is not a textile but a textile tool. A spindel whorl.
It’s made out of clay. This one was found at the excavation of Kalmar Slottsfjärden, the bay outside Kalmar castle, Sweden. Kalmar was one of the biggest medieval cities in Sweden during 14th century.
The whorl is dated to 14th century. Approx. size is 3 cm high.
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical textiles
Our advent calendar starts with a famous mitten from Åsle, Sweden.
The mitten is made in naalbinding technique.
It’s made out of wool yarn. The fringe was originally red, green and undyed wool.
When the mitten was found it was dated to 3rd- 5th century. 2002 a C-14 dated changed that and placed the dating of the mitten to 1510-1640.
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical textiles
