Medieval English Embroidery on Display for the Last Time at the V&A’s Opus Anglicanum Exhibit
3rd October 2016
The embroidery was full of elaborate religious imagery, fantastical beasts and heraldic symbols and was in high demand at papal courts. This particular series was mainly made in London and many of the embroiders of these beautiful pieces were workers from St. Paul’s Cathedral. While most of the works are religious vestments such as copes, shoes, mitres, burses, orphreys, and stockings, there are also beautiful secular objects on display: seal bags, family emblems, guild funeral palls, psalters, and ivory carvings. In the later Middle Ages, the work expanded from predominantly religious attire into the design of chivalric garb, and heraldic crests [sic]. Interesting fact: the position of Royal Armourer was often held by an embroiderer. By the fourteenth century Opus Anglicanum was at its zenith, with kings and queens commissioning expensive and intricate designs to send across to Europe as diplomatic gifts. After the Black Death embroiderers used time saving practices to keep up with demands, such as separates that could be attached on silk and velvets, and reused as patterns. There was also a change in materials as well, elaborate silk fabrics were imported.
I used to do needlework and have done some of this sort — it is a pain in the ass to do but really rewarding once it’s complete.