Antependium

Unknown

15th century · Silk · Robert Lehman Collection

Fifteen fragments of medium red cult silk velvet, probably pieces of vestments were used to make this altar frontal. The pattern is a simple one of large three-lobed shields on wide, curved stems. A cope (a liturgical vestment worn during processions) from the cathedral at Burgos and now in the Art Institute of Chicago that dates to the 1430s is made from silk cut velvet with a similar design, as are a chasuble in the church of Santa Maria di Fontegiusta and a panel in the church of San Raimondo al Refugio, both in Siena. A fragment of red velvet in the Musées Royaux d'Art et d'Histoire, Brussels, has similar shields, but they contain stylized pomegranate motifs.

Artist

Unknown

Date

15th century

Medium

Silk

Culture

Italian or Spanish

Department

Robert Lehman Collection

Credit line

Robert Lehman Collection, 1975