Silk
Advent calendar December 13th 2018
Our thirteenth advent calendar post is two copes from Uppsala cathedral, Sweden. They are both made out of silk brocade with membran gold thread. The fabrics are both produced in Lucca in Italy.
The copes are dated to the second half of the 14th century.
Now in the collections of the cathedral Treasury Museum, Uppsala , Sweden.
/ Amica and Maria
Photo: Historical Textiles
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Advent calendar December 10th 2018
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
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Advent calendar December 6th 2018
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
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Advent calendar December 5th 2018
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
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Advent calendar December 4th 2018
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
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35/ 2018- Top of a sudarium
” The sudarium or, a cloth of fine quality to wipe away perspiration, or an ornamental handkerchief which was seldom put into actual use, but was generally carried in the hand as an ornament as was commonly done by people of rank in ordinary life, now formalized as a vestment, in liturgical use from the 12th century reserved for the bishop; the subcinctorium is a related ornamental vestment reserved for the pope.”
– Wikipedia
We would like to wish you all a happy weekend with a historical textile!
This week we show the top of a sudarium. A sudarium is the cloth a bishop holds in his hand to protect the staff from sweat and dirt.
This sudarium top is in the collections of Historiska museet, Stockholm, Sweden. Originally it was placed on the staff of Thomas Beckert, the sculpture in the museum, originally from Skepptuna church – not the saint! It’s made out of fine linen with a leather backside ( now gone) and have a lovely woven silk band attached to it. Most likely woven in a rigid heddle.
The fragment dates to 1350-1500
Happy weekend!
/ Amica and Maria
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29/2018- The display is everything
We would like to wish you all a very late happy weekend with some reconstruction pictures.
We have just visited Kalmar castle and Roskilde cathedral.
Both places have in their exhibitions a reconstruction of “Queen Margareta’s golden gown”. Roskilde had the original until the 30year war ( in the 17th century) when the Swedes was passing the cathedral on the way home from the war, and just stole the kirtel. Today the original can been seen in Uppsala cathedral.
The kirtel in Kalmar is a printed silk fabric. The fabric is very thin and light.
The one in Roskilde is a reconstruction made by Borås textile University in 1993. That means silk warp and gilded silver thread and silk in the weft. That fabric is very stiff and have more in common with tin foil then a smooth silk.
Here are the different displays:
Kalmar
Roskilde
We are very happy to show how different fabrics drapes. When made out of the same pattern it’s very obvious.
Medieval gold brocade does not really drapes, it’s more like wearing a traffic cone…
Happy weekend ( well…. Tuesday 😉 )
/ Amica and Maria
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26/ 2018 – Eric of Pomerania’s Belt
We would like to wish you all a happy weekend with a historical textile!
This week we focus on another celebrity from Denmark, from the exhibition at National museum in Copenhagen. The belt of Eric of Pomerania.
We would also like to celebrate that we have now over 10300 followers on Facebook 😀
The belt is tablet woven in silk and gilded silver. Originally the silk was very colourful in red, blue and green. The gold have fallen off but on some places one can see traces of it. The belt is dated to: girdle and belt mounts- early 13th – early 14th century.
Buckle and strap end- mid-15th century (Fingerlin 1971; Nørlund 1937)
A full analysis have been done by Viktoria Holmqvist and her article is published in: North European Symposium for Archaeological Textiles X Series: Ancient Textiles Series Volume: 5, Copyright Date: 2010, Published by: Oxbow Books
Thank you Viktoria for an amazing job <3
Happy weekend!
/ Amica and Maria
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23/ 2018- The weekend picture – Relic box from Vadstena
We would like to wish you all a happy weekend with a historical textile.
This week we focus on a relic box from Vadstena abbey church, Östergötland, Sweden.
The abbey was founded in 1346 by Saint Bridget with the assistance of King Magnus IV of Sweden and his Queen Blanche of Namur, who made a will donating ten farms, including that of Vadstena in Dal Hundred, Östergötland, to the abbey founded by Bridget.
The relic box is dated to mid 15th century and it was made by the nuns at the abbey. The surface is covered in silk embroidery with additional details in gold. The inscription on the box says: stud capud est onnis sancti martiris qui suit de co(n) soriis sancti gereonis martiris
The box have got a pale red linen lining. The box and the foot is made out of wood.
The relic box can be found in the collections of Statens Historiska museum in Sweden.
Here is the link to the object in the database.
Happy weekend!
/ Amica and Maria
