Description
This simple box is covered with German Brick Stitch
embroidery. Generally found in the area of Germany the 14th to 15th
centuries, the particular example this box was based on is dated to the end of
the 13th century. According to Master Richard Wymarc’s article, “A
Stitch Out of Time,” most of the examples are on an evenweave linen, using
mostly silk embroidery threads (on occasion linen), and consist of vertical
stitches over 2, 4 or 6 threads. Occasionally, other length stitches are seen
depending on the pattern. There are examples of pouches made from this
technique in the Victoria & Albert Museum such as this one from the 14th
century.
(14th C. German Bag © Victoria & Albert Museum, London)
There are also examples of boxes covered with fabric or the
embroidery. The following box is from the 14th to 15th
century in Wesphalia and is a corporal box which was used to hold the corporal,
the linen altar cloth for the paten and chalice (Miller). It is covered with
brick stitch embroidery.
(Miller)
These two pyxes, boxes for carrying communion wafers, were
illustrated in The Treasury of Basel
Cathedral, found through Kathy Stormberg’s blog, Medieval Arts and Crafts, and are from the 15th century.
They are covered with silk velvet and using different embroidery techniques, applique
and other decorations.
(Stormberg, 2010)
The box my reproduction is based on is from the end of the
13th century found in the book Ferne
Welten – Freie Stadt: Dortmund in Mittelalter also found through Medieval Arts and Crafts, and is a
reliquary box, 3.5 cm high and 6 cm in diameter. It is covered on the side with
brick stitch embroidery and on the lid with what appears to be a piece of cut
down tapestry or brocade.
(Stormberg, 2008)
Materials & Tools
·
Papier mache box and cardboard.
·
Cotton evenweave fabric, 28 count: Linen would
be preferable.
·
Cotton DMC embroidery floss: Silk would be
preferable, some examples of linen and wool.
·
White linen fabric for the lining.
·
Cotton DMC size 3 cotton perle: Silk, linen or
wool preferable.
·
White linen sewing thread.
Skills & Methods
German brick stitch is not that far different from counted
cross stitch or needlepoint. It is, essentially, a counted satin stitch that is
worked vertically on the fabric. The stitch is taken over 2, 4 or 6 threads,
though stitches of 1 thread or other sizes can be used depending on the need of
the pattern. In this pattern, there are several 1 and 3 sized stitches at the
edges to make the pattern fit. Most of the stitches in this project were done
by bringing the needle up at the bottom of the stitch and down at the top of
the stitch, though variations occurred depending on the placement of the stitch
and how much floss I had left at that moment. According to Mast Wymarc’s
article, stitches were done in different manners, so there is no one way to do
so.
On the 28 count fabric, I used 3 strands of embroidery
floss, which several patterns and examples suggested, and that seemed to fill
in the fabric nicely. Typically I would fill in one color first, then the next,
and so on. The patterns for the top and side of the box came, again, from Kathe
Stormberg’s blog Medieval Arts and Crafts.
She has done a great deal of work on charting out different patterns based on
period examples. The pattern for the top was part of a motif on a reliquary box
from Cologne in the 13th century and the side pattern came from a
German hanging from around 1300 and can be seen at the end of this write-up. I
used a slightly lighter blue then she did in her example, and used the same
blue, red, and gold, on both parts. For the side, I decided to use gold instead
of white to tie it in with the top and because I found that the gold made the
red and blue seem richer, where the white made it seem very bright. As I was
embroidering the long band for the side of the box, I noticed that it was
shrinking down from my original measurements by about ¼”, most likely due to
tension issues. For a pouch this would not be an issue, but for a box with very
defined measurements, it is a problem. Unfortunately, I was not able to stretch
the side band out enough to cover the box, so I had to trim the box to make it
fit. In the future, I will probably add an extra row at the top and bottom just
to be sure that there is enough.
The box was assembled using the example provided by Courtney
Pritchard (Elen verch Phellip) on her blog Opus
Elenae. I toyed with several different ways of attaching the fabric and the
lining, but in the end her method made the most sense. Her article, “German
Brickwork Reliquary Box” goes into much more detail, but in essence, the top
and bottom circles were cut from the box and lid, covered in white linen that
would then end up sandwiched between layers of either more linen or the embroidery.
Everything is then whip stitched together and many of the edges covered by
period braided edging such as demonstrated in Isis Sturtewagen’s
blog Medieval Silkwork and in the
video “Embroidered Braid Tutorial Part 1” on YouTube by Rachel C.. A thicker
linen or perhaps silk would have been lovely as the lining of the box, but I
was trying to work with what I had and so used the white linen. See the In
Progress Photos for more detail on the assembly process.
The lid is held closed by a loop of
braided embroidery floss and a button. A simple tassel adorns the loop as well
as a brass holly charm which is my badge and adds a personal stamp to the
project.. I attempted to fingerloop braid the loop but was unsuccessful (it was
my first try at fingerloop braiding). The tassel could also be done with a
Turk’s head which I hope to attempt on a future project.
Patterns Used
Both patterns were from Kathy Stromberg's blog, Medieval Art and Craft. http://medievalartcraft.blogspot.com.au
