The Well-Read Medievalist has returned after taking a short baby break. I do hope that you have used these last few months to read all the books I recommended in my previous reviews. The book being reviewed this month is Medieval Craftsmen: Embroiderers, by Kay Staniland. This is a very nicely written history of embroidery, focusing on the Middle Ages.
I chose this book for this month because I was recently in the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum in Munich. They have placed much of their Medieval textiles on permanent display and some of the highlights of this exhibition are discussed and pictured in this book.
Anyone who is interested in embroidery or textiles in general should read through this book. There are wonderful tidbits about Medieval textile work, including design, production and techniques. The book contains some very interesting information that sheds light on how embroidery was done, how long it might take to complete a piece, how much a piece of work might cost, who did what types of work (did you know that professional embroiderers were mostly men and that embroidery work was often arranged through the armorers?) and so on.
Some of the techniques that are described are appliqué (with some good tricks for keeping the edges from fraying), intarsia (inlay) work, outline and filling stitches, counted and drawn thread work, quilting and couching. There is also a section on the embellishment of embroidery, which covers the addition of pearls, gold, enameled plaques and other items that would be sewn onto textiles to enhance the embroidery.
There are many pictures or extant work as well as illustrations of people doing embroidery. Unfortunately, many of the pictures are black and white. However, there are many color close-up shots of other pieces that (almost) make up for the black and white shots. Many are ones that I have not seen in other sources.
I would recommend this book as a good addition to any Medieval bookshelf for everyone who does embroidery.
Staniland, Kay. Medieval Craftsmen: Embroiderers.
London: British Museum Press, 1991.
ISBN 0 71412051 0
Back to: Various novels by Sharon Kay Penman
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