Today we go early 19th century with an empire dress from the house hold after Carl von Linné. The famous Swedish botanist, zoologist, and physician who formalised binomial nomenclature, the modern system of naming organisms. He is known as the “father of modern taxonomy”.
The dress is made in a lovely thin checked silk fabric and have a blue linen lining in the bodice.
Today in the collections of Linnaeus Museum in Uppsala, Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
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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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Today we post a picture of a small piece from an embroidery, silk on linen. It’s a sort of brick stitch that is called eye stitch in Swedish. We don’t know the English term.
It’s quite small and described as a part of an antependium.
Dated to 14-15th century. Now in the collection of the treasury in Uppsala cathedral.
/Amica and Maria
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Today we want to show you some spangles/ sequins and some mini-mini pearls.
It’s a top of a sudarium. The top is silk, metal thread, linen thread, spangles and pearls.
The linen is also embroidered with red and blue silk. The seams are covered with silk ribbons, woven in a rigid heddle.
Dated to 15th century.
Today in the collections of The Swedish History Museum.
/ Amica & Maria
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We stay in Gent state archives. Today we have have another important document. This one dated 1385. The silk ribbons connected to the seals are all green. Some are loop braided and some a woven round, most likely in a rigid heddle.
/ Amica & Maria
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Today we take a turn to the State Archive in Gent. It’s a document, with lovely green silk ribbons connected to the document. It’s rare to have exact dating on historical textiles and here we have a document dated to one single day. That is so awesome!!!
3 December 1339
Since we don’t know what the document was about we asked a friend that translated the museum text for us. Here is a summary:
“This “oorkonde” is about an alliance between Vlaanderen (Flanders) en Brabant to secure the trade of wool (I suppose from England) Jacob encouraged other duchess and dukes to do the same. So basically an other act in the 100 year war between France en England. Jacob is murdered and has a statue on the Friday market in Gent. A “oorkonde” is an official document normally with seals on it. They should be at the bottom of the document attached to a ribbon. From 1600 the seals made way for autographs or signatures The “lakennijverheid” is a trade of cloth makers and of huge economical interest in Gent (whole of Flanders really)”
An important document with costly silk. Woven in plain weave. Possibly in a rigid heddle.
/ Amica & Maria
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Some metals are better then other in combination with textiles.
Iron tend to rust and this piece have today some rust “blobs” and rusty rings on the fabric. Originally it was rings sewn on to a velvet fabric. Most likely lacing rings on a doublet. The rings were sewn on with double white linen thread.
The piece comes from Italy and is dated 1470-1540. Read more about the finds from this collection here on our blog. Use the search word Italy and you will find more finds from the same collection.
/ Amica and Maria
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” Aglets (aiglets)- These small handmade metal tubes were sewn, or attached with tiny metal rivets, to the end of leather, cord or ribbon laces. You can find their plastic descendants on shoelaces today.
Aglets, also known as aigletts, throwes or pyntes, were most commonly used from the 15th to the 17th century, when fashion and necessity required people to be laced together. They were used to secure the shaping structures that were worn under women’s skirts, known as farthingales, to fasten jerkins and to tie sleeves and hose (short or long trousers) to doublets (fitted padded jackets). Since virtually everyone needed them, they were mass produced, often quite crudely, and cheap to buy at around 2-3 pennies per dozen, which is why they are found in such numbers.” – London Mudlark: Lara Maiklem
Today we leave Sweden for a quick visit to Italy. We have had the pleasure to analyze a medieval textile collection with several objects in it. The owner wants to be unknown and we can’t therefore tell you where to find the objects. The collection is dated 1470-1540.
In the collection a broken point is found. It’s a tabby rep woven silk band and an aiglet at the end. The colors are brown and purple. The aiglet is made out of some sort of copper alloy/ brass. The band measures approx. 10-11mm and the weft is purple silk. It is possibly woven in a rigid heddle.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles – please cred us if sharing.
Putting pieces of fabric together to create a larger fabric. That seems to have been more rule then exception during the Middle Ages.
Matching a pattern in the fabric was possible a luxury not even the highest nobility and the church could afford.
Here is a Danish chasuble from 1470-80 with some piecing that gives us a bit of a headache but also a smile of relief. If they weren’t perfect then, we reenactors can take a deep breath and let go of our modern eye too. The chasuble is made in silk velvet.
It can be found in the collections of the National museum, Copenhagen, Denmark
/ Amica and Maria
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Today we in Sweden celebrates Christmas.
Our twenty fourth advent calendar post is a silk and gold thread embroidery. It’s made in the studio connected to the famous painter Albertus Pictor. Aka Albert Pärlstickare ( bead/ pearl embroider).
The embroidery is a back shield and was originally attached to a cope from Maria church, Sigtuna, Sweden.
The shield is dated to mid- late 15th century.
Now in collections of Historiska museet, Sweden.
God jul!
/Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
