Opus Anglicanum or
English work is a contemporary term for fine
needleworkNeedlework is a broad term for the handicrafts of decorative sewing and textile arts. Anything that uses a needle for construction can be called needlework...
of Medieval England done for ecclesiastical or secular use on
clothingA feature of nearly all modern human societies is the wearing of clothing or clothes, a category encompassing a wide variety of materials that cover the body....
, hangings or other textiles, primarily by
nunA Nun, or also known as a Sister in some cases, is a woman who has taken special vows committing her to a religious life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
s and then by professionals who had served seven years' apprenticeship in secular workshops. Most surviving examples were for church use. These exquisite and expensive
embroideryEmbroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
pieces were often
copeThe cope is a liturgical vestment, a very long mantle or cloak, open in front and fastened at the breast with a band or clasp. It may be of any liturgical colour....
s but could be other types of church furnishings and
vestmentVestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially among Latin Rite and other Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, Methodists, and Lutherans...
s.
Opus Anglicanum or
English work is a contemporary term for fine
needleworkNeedlework is a broad term for the handicrafts of decorative sewing and textile arts. Anything that uses a needle for construction can be called needlework...
of Medieval England done for ecclesiastical or secular use on
clothingA feature of nearly all modern human societies is the wearing of clothing or clothes, a category encompassing a wide variety of materials that cover the body....
, hangings or other textiles, primarily by
nunA Nun, or also known as a Sister in some cases, is a woman who has taken special vows committing her to a religious life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
s and then by professionals who had served seven years' apprenticeship in secular workshops. Most surviving examples were for church use. These exquisite and expensive
embroideryEmbroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
pieces were often
copeThe cope is a liturgical vestment, a very long mantle or cloak, open in front and fastened at the breast with a band or clasp. It may be of any liturgical colour....
s but could be other types of church furnishings and
vestmentVestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially among Latin Rite and other Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, Methodists, and Lutherans...
s. They were usually
embroideredEmbroidery is the art or handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as metal strips, pearls, beads, quills, and sequins....
on
linenLinen is a textile made from the fibers of the flax plant, Linum usitatissimum. Linen is labor-intensive to manufacture, but when it is made into garments, it is valued for its exceptional coolness and freshness in hot weather....
or, later,
velvetVelvet is a type of woven tufted fabric in which the cut threads are very evenly distributed, with a short dense pile, giving it a distinct feel.- Composition :...
, in
split stitchBackstitch or back stitch and its variants stem stitch, outline stitch and split stitch are a class of embroidery and sewing stitches in which individual stitches are made backward to the general direction of sewing...
and couching with
silkSilk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from cocoons made by the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
and
goldGold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. It has been a highly sought-after precious metal for coinage, jewelry, and other arts since the beginning of recorded history. The metal occurs as nuggets or grains in rocks, in veins and in alluvial deposits. Gold is...
or
silver-gilt threadGoldwork is the art of embroidery using metal threads. It is particularly prized for the way light plays on it. The term "goldwork" is used even when the threads are imitation gold, silver, or copper...
. Gold-wound thread, pearls and jewels figured in inventory descriptions.
English needlework had become famous across Europe during the
Anglo-SaxonThe history of Anglo-Saxon England covers the history of England from the end of Roman Britain and the establishment of Anglo-Saxon kingdoms in the fifth century until the Norman Conquest of England in 1066...
period. A Vatican inventory of 1295 lists over 113 pieces from England, more than from any other country; a request by
Pope Martin IVPope Martin IV , born Simon de Brion, held the papacy from February 21, 1281 until his death....
, who had envied the gold-embroidered
copeThe cope is a liturgical vestment, a very long mantle or cloak, open in front and fastened at the breast with a band or clasp. It may be of any liturgical colour....
s and mitres of English priests, that Cistercian religious houses send more is reported by the Benedictine
chronicleGenerally a chronicle is a historical account of facts and events ranged in chronological order. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events, the purpose being the recording of events that occurred, seen from the perspective of the chronicler...
r
Matthew ParisMatthew Paris was a Benedictine monk, English chronicler, artist in illuminated manuscripts and cartographer, based at St Albans Abbey in Hertfordshire. He wrote a number of works, mostly historical, which he scribed and illuminated himself, typically in drawings partly coloured with watercolour...
of
St AlbansSt Albans is a city in southern Hertfordshire, England, around north of central London, which forms the main urban area of the City and District of St Albans. It was a settlement of pre-Roman origin named Verlamion by the Ancient British, Catuvellauni tribe...
: "This command of my Lord Pope did not displease the London merchants who traded in these embroideriesand sold them at their own price." The high water mark of style and refinement was reached in 13th and 14th century work, which the exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, September-November 1963, exhibited with high-style Gothic works of wood and stone sculptures, metalwork and ivories of the same period.
One particularly fine example is the
The Adoration of the Magi chasubleThe chasuble is the outermost liturgical vestment worn by clergy for the celebration of the Eucharist in Western-tradition Christian Churches that use full vestments, primarily in the Roman Catholic Church, in the...
from c.1325 in red velvet embroidered in gold thread and pearls at the
Metropolitan Museum of ArtThe Metropolitan Museum of Art, known colloquially as The Met, is an art museum located on the eastern edge of Central Park, along what is known as Museum Mile in New York City, USA. It has a permanent collection containing more than two million works of art, divided into nineteen curatorial...
in
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. It depicts a
nativityThe Nativity of Jesus has been a major subject of Christian art since the 4th century. The artistic depictions of the Nativity or birth of Jesus, celebrated at Christmas, are based on the narratives in the Bible, in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, and further elaborated by written, oral and...
scene with emphasis on decorative motifs, flowers, animals, birds, beasts, and angels.
The Butler-Bowden CopeThe Butler-Bowden Cope is a cope in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. It derives its name from the family who owned it for several centuries. It dates from 1330-50 and shows scenes from the Life of the Virgin with apostles and saints, embroidered with silver, silver-gilt thread and...
at the
Victoria and Albert MuseumThe Victoria and Albert Museum in London is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects. Named after Prince Albert and Queen Victoria, it was founded in 1852, and has since grown to now cover some and 145 galleries...
is another surviving example.
Few surviving secular examples exist.
External links
Further reading
- King, Donald: Opus Anglicanum: English Medieval Embroidery, London: The Curwen Press, 1963.
- Christie, A.G.H.: English Medieval Embroidery, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1938