After looking at a stumpwork chasuble from Merseburg and another stumpwork chasuble from Vienna, it is now time to explore a very special piece of stumpwork embroidery. The Dommuseum Wien has a magnificent cope hood from the Cathedral Treasury on permanent display. Thanks to the cathedral accounts, the piece can be precisely dated to the year AD 1518. Unfortunately, the accounts do not mention the name of the “Seydnatter” (silk embroiderer) who made this splendid piece of stumpwork and pearl embroidery. Hans Gswankh was the goldsmith who made the metal decorations for the cope hood. Let’s have a look at the embroidery of the anonymous local silk embroidery master.

The stumpwork embroidery depicts, from left to right, Catherine of Alexandria with a sword and a broken wheel, Mary with baby Jesus, and James the Greater with his pilgrim’s staff and a shell. The coats of arms at the top show Austria on the left and Hungary on the right.

Thanks to the cathedral accounts, we have a better understanding of the materials and the work involved. The stumpwork embroidery contains four spools of gold thread, six lot (a lot is between 14 and 18 grams) pearls, four lot silk and 3/4 zendel (silk fabric). I assume that the four lot silk are the silk threads used for the embroidery. The zendel was likely used to cover the faces.

Specific steps in creating the cope hood mentioned in the accounts are: couching down the pearls, attaching the metal decorations, and making the four stumpwork faces. The materials and the stitching fee amount to 18 Taler, 4 Schilling and 22 Phennig. Not sure what that would buy you in AD 1518.

The stumpwork embroidery seen on the cope hood shows several techniques that we have seen before. There are the silk-wrapped wire hands and the silk-wrapped purl hairs. The golden background is a filled basketweave diaper pattern over string padding. When the cope hood was being conserved, it was noted that the stumpwork contained cotton wool, cardboard and linen buckram.

The stumpwork heads of the figures are firm to the touch and have sharp facial features. Whatever form is in there has been covered with silk. Simple stitching was added for the facial features. Manfred Koller and colleagues have argued that these faces were made in a wooden mould, and they ran some basic experiments (unfortunately, badly published). When my husband and I visited the Oberhausmuseum in Passau, we saw a collection of wooden moulds that probably looked similar to those used. In this case, the moulds were used by the Lebzelter to make wax votive models. Similar moulds were used to make Springerle, a delicious and highly decorative cookie. Both were made by the Lebzelter, a trade that eventually morphed into the modern Konditor/Pâtissier.

At the Open Air Museum of Glentleiten, where I work as a medieval embroiderer, they often showcase historical trades. That’s how I met Lebzelter Katharina Ratzinger. When I told the story of the medieval stumpwork embroideries, she was immediately intrigued. She might be able to supply me with a historical model to run some tests. Watch this space!

Literature
Egg, E., 1962. Die Kunst der Seidensticker im Umkreis des Innsbrucker Hofes. Der Schlern 228, 1–47.
Koller, M., Macho, E., 1998. Gotische Textilplastiken und die Zusammenarbeit von Seidenstickern mit Bildhauern und Malern. Restauratorenblätter 18, 95–105.
Koller, M., Macho, E., 1998. Textilreliefs und Perlstickerei, in: Braunsteiner, M., Kaindl, H. (Eds.), Historische Textilien aus dem Sakralbereich. Bedeutung und Nutzung, Erforschung und Konservierung. Schriften zur Kunst- und Kulturgeschichte des Benediktinerstiftes Admont VII. Diözesanmuseum Graz, Graz, pp. 37–49.