Jacobean Embroidery: Its Forms and Fillings, Including Late Tudor

by Ada Wentworth Fitzwilliam; A. F. Morris Hands

Lady Brougham and Vaux had a most wonderful collection, from which interesting comparisons could be made. One pair of bed hangings, of coarse linen of the 16th century, show the trees with a meandering growth entirely characteristic of those of heavier kind which appear in later embroideries, these trees also are undoubtedly intended to represent the Tree of Life, for round one is coiled a serpent, while beneath the scanty but large leaved boughs, incidents in the story of the expulsion from Paradise are to be descried, as also the procession into the ark.

The work is without doubt early, for there is a primitive character in the arrangement of the inconsequent groups of figures, Adam and Eve stand nude either side the tree, couples in weird though contemporaneous costume to the work are dotted over the surface quite at haphazard.

The similarity between the tree on these curtains and on one of the 18th century once in the same collection is very striking. Added grace of design has beautified the later work, but the same forms can be traced and the same parrots and squirrels are introduced, the Biblical story at the foot of the 16th century curtain has been replaced by a portion of the legend of the human soul.

Another very interesting example I have seen, attributed to the years of James I's reign, seems to suggest that the worker had realised the "waves" in an Eastern pattern and made growths of coral at the base of the tree, but had then converted a line or two of waves into terra firma, for at one end reposes a lion, towards which a stag is bounding with head turned back as if in fear of pursuers.

The birds in this example are very tropical, a miniature peacock on the lower branches spreads its tail stiffly, parrots like the one illustrated in our collection of details, birds of paradise, and squirrels, are all to be noted among foliations that are the most superb, taken individually, it is possible to imagine, most are worked fairly solid, such light fillings as there are, being small sprays of leaves like those in our plate No. 17.

Carnations, harebells, canterbury bells, roses, marigolds, grapes, are included in the composition; block shading, chain stitch, stem stitch are all employed in the working, and a very interesting example of the Opus Plumarian is given in the tail feathers of the tiny peacock.

The dissection of detail in early English crewel embroidery is a very fascinating occupation and well repays the expenditure of time. So little has been written about this particular phase of the embroiderer's art, that it is by old records and examples one becomes best informed and in a great measure enabled to trace the growth of the style that culminated in the massive designs that derived their name from the epoch in which they were in favour. Tudor crewel work, was chiefly done in broad outline of a more or less fanciful nature as regards the stitching, witness the sections of that Tudor piece which is shewn in our first illustration.

Forms were large but gradually became reduced as they were worked more solidly. The beautiful foxglove pattern in "Bess of Hardwicke's" curtains at Hardwicke, shews a very slight feeling of transition but it may safely be assumed that one of the influences bearing on the execution of the crewel work, was the portentous character of much of the contemporary canvas hand-worked tapestry such as the famous set of panels unearthed in Hatton Gardens. The architectural basis is a link between the Ecclesiastical and Secular embroideries of the past centuries, and anyone interested in the evolution of design would be struck with the similitude of the large leaves and flowers in these panels to those of the crewel designs of the same date; it is also noteworthy that the symbolic significance in the details of the panels is ecclesiastic, whereas in the crewel work it is always based on the legend of the Tree of Life, or secularly emblematic.

Colourings were often in both styles, blues, greens, bright yellows and browns predominated, carnation reds figuring in some examples, used for the flower of that name and for the pomegranate, which, with its seeds visible, signifies future life and immortality.

The carnation and the caterpillar were both Stuart emblems, and occur in nearly all kinds of work executed during their reigns; the rose, of course, has its national as well as its religious significance, likewise the oak (after the restoration).