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Advent calendar 2021 – 14 December

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Our fourteenth Advent calendar post 2021 is:

A the patterned part of a Danish wool textile. This is a textile find from Hvilehøj in Jutland. The bottom fabric is analyzed and is in a red color, the pigment is kermes. Although today it is mostly brown. But it can be seen that the patterned thread is of a different quality and of a different color. The bottom fabric is woven in plain weave and the pattern is picked. The pattern thread is originally assumed to have been white. It is 2-plied and the thread in the weave is a single in both warp and weft.

HERE you can read more about the entire reconstruction work done by researchers from the National Museum in Copenhagen. Scroll down in the text.

The fabric is dated 900AD.

With a 2-plied thin wool thread you could weave such lovely patterns. But you can off course also use it as warp in a tablet woven weave. Or as sewing thread. Or make embroideries with it. We love our white 2-plied thread since it’s strong and natural white and not bleached.

/ Amica and Maria

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Advent calendar December 23 2020

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Today we go Royal with a linen collar with some amazing bobin laces.
The owner was King Gustav II Adolf/ Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, He reigned over Sweden between 1611-1632. He was shot and died the 6th of November 1632 in Lützen during the 30 year war.

The collar is made out of a very thin and evenly woven plain linen weave. The stitching is to die for!!!
The bobin lace is also made out of linen thread, two plied.

Today the collar is in the collection of The Royal Armoury, Stockholm.
/ Amica & Maria
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Advent calendar December 22 2020

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Fulled fabrics. The fabrics during the Middle Ages were often fulled. When fabrics from that time is found in the ground, the majority of the nap is often gone. That means the fabrics that we find give a different surface then the fabric originally had. Also fabrics other than archaeological, may have lost a lot of its fulled surface. Here we can see some evidence of that.

The examples are both from gilded leather coverlets, where the gilded strip ( or a twisted linen strip) has fallen off and exposes a fabric that has significantly more nap than the rest of the fabric.
Both fabrics are dated to 15th or 16th century.

The first fabric is from the Ilsbo embroidery. Now in Hälsinglands museums collections.

The second fabric is from Dalhem II embroidery. Enlarge photo to get a even better view of the nap. Now in the collections of The Swedish History Museum.

/ Amica & Maria

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Advent calendar December 21 2020

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Today we would like to raise the idea of a perfect result. That seems to be a fairly modern approach. We see repeatedly during our analyses that the perfect result is a non existing thing during the Middle Ages. This embroidery from Ärentuna is a good example of that.

Check out the blue square with the yellow pattern in. During the sewing someone ran out of yellow yarn. And continued with a light orange yarn instead. That someone, was also a bit unfocused and turned one of the wings of the pattern upside down.

Misstakes happens all the time when people are doing crafts. But during the Middle Ages people seemed less interested in fixing them. We find this very heartwarming and would like to strike a blow for not correcting things too often. It’s a bit like live TV. Don’t mention it, then the audience will notice it, just move on and everything will be just fine.

The embroidery is dated 14-15th century.
/ Amica & Maria
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Advent calendar December 20 2020

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Today we return to the Grödinge double weave.
But today we focus on the animals of the middle section. We got lions, eagles and the animal combined by the two, griffins. At first sight all animals looks the same, but at a closer look, all the animals have some small individual parts. That menas that the pattern have been picked by hand during the weaving.

The weave is made out of white and dark blue wool and is dated to the 15th century.

Today the double weave can be found in the collections of The Swedish History Museum.
/ Amica & Maria
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Advent calendar December 18 2020

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Today we have some items from the world famous Oseberg ship burial. Viking age. Norway.

The excavation is exceptional in many ways. It’s a woman’s grave and it contains a lot of items that she might need in her afterlife. Amongst some of the things a lot of textile tools.

Niddy noddy
Distaff and spindle sticks and whorl
Tablets for tablet weaving

Today in the collections of Vikingskipshuset, Olso.

/ Amica and Maria

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Advent calendar December 17 2020

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Today we will show something rare. A undershirt for a solider in Hälsinge regiment anno 1757. This shirt was sewn as a model copy for the regiment.
It is one of few surviving examples in the world.

The shirt is sewn in hand woven linen. A very coarse fabric. Very fabric efficient model. Not much have happend since the shirts from the Middle Ages.

Today this shirt can be found in the collections of the Swedish Army museum.
/ Amica and Maria

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Advent calendar December 16 2020

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Down. A material that we know was used a lot during the Middle Ages.
Not very many down filled items are still around. But luckily we have a few cushions in Sweden, still filled with down. Or at least what we believe is down. They have not been opened… yet.

The weight and the fluffiness feels like down. And sometimes even a small down find it’s way out though the cushion fabric. As in this case with the lovely gilded leather embroidery cushion from Aspö church.

Dated to late 15th century. Possibly also early 16th century.
Now in the collections of The Swedish History museum.

/ Amica & Maria
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Advent calendar December 15 2020

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Today’s post is a very basic but very important item, a band or a ribbon. This small band in linen have served it’s owner well. Today it’s very little of it left. Woven in single spun linen thread. Most likely in a rigid heddle. Just 8 mm wide.

It’s a small find from the Secret Italian collection.
Dated 1470-1530

/ Amica & Maria
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Advent calendar December 13 2020

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Today all swedes celebrate a saint. St Lucia. So let’s go for a saint today. Or two.

This lovely chasuble in blue velvet decorated with embroidery on the back. A magnificent piece! Check out the piecing on the bottom of the chasuble.

Dated late 15th century. In the collections of National museum, Danmark

/ Amica and Maria

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