Original Subject line: “Pleating from Den Ljusa Medeltilden“
{Editor’s notes:
#1 — This discussion refers to an article (“Medeltida dräkt i bild och verklighet” — ” Medieval costume in image and reality” published in a book called “Den Ljusa medeltiden: studier tillägnade Aron Andersson” — “The Bright Middle Ages: studies dedicated to Aron Andersson”, published in 1984 by the Museum of National Antiquities in Stockholm, Sweden.
#2 — the scans referenced below were no longer in the files section when these discussion were being transfered; in the early days of the 12th Century Garb List, there was limited room for files and photos. Katrine posted new things regularly and took things done just as frequently, after the discussion. I’ve been able to find one of the images under discussion here, but not the other..
~ EMK}
I’ve uploaded a scan of 2 pages of the article “Medeltida dräkt i bild och verklighet” by Margaret Nockert.
I chose this page because it had 2 images of extant cloth and the line drawing explaining details. There is an additional image of a pleated gore on the next page, along with the standard Chartres statues and a 13th century image of Queen Katharina.
The English synopsis of the article says:
“Medieval Costume: Image and reality
The long robes of Byzantine origin which were in fashion in Europe between the 12th and 14th centuries are abundantly depicted in ecclesiastical art, but less is known as to what they really looked like.
The textile finds made during recent decades in large excavations of medieval town centres, however, have furnished some indications regarding both textile techniques and costume. For example, finely pleated woollen fabrics, resembling Norwegian finds, have come to light in Gamla Lödöse, the precursor of Göteborg, situated on the Göta älv river about 40 km north of that city.
Romanesque sculpture features elongated figures with richly pleated costumes, as for example in the sculptures surrounding the west portal at Chartres (mid-12th century) or the tomb of Queen Katarina at Gudhem Abbey (mid-13th century). The regular, parallel folds in these depictions have hitherto been regarded as primarily an artistic convention. But the discovery of these contemporary, finely pleated fabrics shows that the artists were depicting a genuine style of costume.” (page 196)
I can only make out about 1 in every 3 or four words in the original, but I believe that the pleat and seam finishes shown in figures 2, a, b and c are taken from figure one on the previous page. If I have the timing right, the dating of the Lödöse finds date from before 1100 all the way up to 1200.
Perhaps our resident Scandinavian expert can verify?
(Image provided for study and academic purposes – I do not own the copyright!)
~ Katrine / Katherine Barich
Message #1021, April 15, 2003
Here comes summary of the relevant parts of the article:
There are many finds of pleated fabric from Lödöse and figure 2 a, b and c does not necessarily come from the biggest piece, which is depicted on figure 1.
The text also mentions three fragments of this kind from Uppsala and one from Lund and as I mentioned in my previous mail on pleated fabric, there are several finds of fragments from Norway.
About the Lödöse finds:
Most of them are woven in 3-shaft twill, but there is also some checked (?, colour or weavepattern?)3 shaft twill and 4- shaft twill.
They are pleated along their whole length and the longest piece is 87 cm long. The folds have varying depth, between 0.4 and 1 cm, most within the 0.5-0.7 range. Only a few of them are sewn with running stitches as depicted on figures 2 a, b and c. The larger fragments are made up of smaller gores, between 10-18 cm wide and are joined in different ways. Where selvedges meet they are joined with small running stitches, otherwise they are joined in the same way and then the edges are either stitched together with overcast stitches or blanket stitch. On some of the larger fragments there are false seams to give the impression that the garment was made of many small gores.
When preserved the hems are either turned and sewn with running stitch, or overcast stitches, or just blanket stitched around the edges.
> If I have the timing right, the dating of the Lödöse >finds date from before 1100 all the way up to 1200.
Some of the fragments can possibly be dated to before 1100, most of them the 12th c and some from the period around 1200. Some of the Norwegian fragments are from the 10th c and the Uppsala fragments seem to be from the 13th c.
I have just bought 7,5 m (150cm wide) fabric of 50% wool and 50% cotton (unusual and probably not period for northern Europe) in a medium green colour that has a little yellow in it. I’m thinking about making a pleated dress with 20 gores ores something like that. if you make the gores very narrow than you can make the pleating almost parallel and still have enough width. I think. But that is a long term project, probably not started until after summer or so.
~ Eva Andersson
Message #1023, April 16, 2003