A beautiful mitre attributed to Jean le Noir (and his daughter Bourgot) was exhibited at the Musée de Cluny in 2020. When I walked into the Museu Episcopal the Vic many years later, I saw a similar mitre on display. Looking both mitres up in the literature, confirmed that art historians had seen the similarities before me. Apart from the gorgeous mid-14th-century goldwork and silk embroidery, the design drawings can be attributed to the workshop of illuminator Jean le Noir (and his daughter), active until around AD 1375. Let’s dive in!
The mitre on display at Museé de Cluny shows the Annunciation on the back and the Coronation of the Virgin on the front. The lappets show Saints Peter and Paul. See those finals of the bench or throne that Mary and Jesus sit on? They are shaped like a flower or a leaf. These finals are also seen in an illumination of a bible (MS fr. 2, fol. 1) attributed to Jean le Noir. The bible is dated to around AD 1330.
And this is the said illumination. If you look closely, you can see that the finals of the thrones of the four evangelists in the corners look very similar to the finals seen on the mitre from Museé de Cluny. Jean le Noir worked together with his daughter Bourgot. Who knows if it was actually she who drew the design for the mitre? Much like May Morris, all those centuries later.
And this is the mitre in the Museu Episcopal de Vic in Spain. This time, it shows the Annunciation on the front and the Coronation of the Virgin on the back. There is no embroidery on the lappets.
And here’s the back of the Vic Mitre. Not easy to photograph! But you can just make out the finals of the throne Jesus is sitting on. They are the same as those used by Jean le Noir in his illumination.
Although the embroidery on the mitre in Vic is perhaps a little less skilful, the materials and techniques used are very similar. As are the construction and the construction materials used. Together with the fact that the mitres display the same iconography and were both intended to be worn by abbots rather than bishops, points to them having been made around the same time in the same place. A mid-14th-century Parisian embroidery workshop with a connection to Jean le Noir and his daughter Bourgot.
Literature
Blöcher, H., 2012. Die Mitren des hohen Mittelalters. Abegg Stiftung, Riggisberg.
Descatoire, C. (Ed.), 2019. L’art en broderie au moyen âge: Autour des collections du musée de Cluny. Musée Cluny, Paris.
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