Dalmatic

Unknown

17th–early 18th century · Silk; metal; satin · Robert Lehman Collection

This complete dalmatic (liturgical vestment), tailored in the traditional shape, is made of two dark red silks related in color but patterned in two very different designs, one dating to the seventeenth century and the other to the early eighteenth. The seventeenth-century fabric, used where apparels would normally be attached on the sleeves and the front and back of the garment, has a small repeat pattern of two small-scale floral motifs, one symmetrical, the other asymmetrical, brocaded in gilt metal thread. The later silk, which forms the major part of the garment, features an assymetrical floral and fruit design embellished with patterns in silvered thread.

Artist

Unknown

Date

17th–early 18th century

Medium

Silk; metal; satin

Culture

Italian

Department

Robert Lehman Collection

Credit line

Robert Lehman Collection, 1975