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Archaeological TeXttles Newsletter
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Number
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I 997
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and Layout E.E. Peacock -
Printed at Vitenskapsmuseet Norwegian University of Science and. Technology 1998
'ISSN 0169-7331
From the Editorial Board Editorial This number of Archaeological Textiles Newsletter deviates from the customary format and contains no notes, announcements, reviews of conferences or source materials. In an effort to bring the Newsletter back up to production schedule energies have concentrated on working through the backlog of articles which have accumulated during the past year. Although ATN began its career as an instrument of short, informative pieces on archaeological textiles, regular readers have undoubtedly noticed over the past few years the increasing length and depth of articles. This is especially the case in the current number. The present number opens with the first of two articles describing the funerary garments of the Hapsburgs buried at Prague Castle. As ATN has already published several articles on the clothing from royal burials, it is exciting to have this supplemented by current research being carried out in Eastern Europe.
Finally, an article addressing storage of archaeological textiles. It was the hope of the current Editor when taking over the reins of ATN in 1994 to include more reports of work addressing the preservation of excavated material, without which this newsletter would not exist. Fulfilling this hope has been less than successful. The rehousing of the collection of medieval archaeological textiles excavated from the cultural layers in the city of Trondheim, Norway, instigated the search for a different packaging system. A new system based upon polystyrene crystal boxes is presented.
Elizabeth E. Peacock, Editor Vitenskapsmuseum/NTNU N-7034 Trondheim Norway
Projects detailing the reconstruction of ancient costumes for use in museum exhibitions and public outreach programmes have become regular features in ATN as well. Taken as a group, these articles put ATN in the forefront as a forum for this very current trend in museum education. In this number, the production of costumes for a Viking-age chieftain and his lady for the Ribes Vikinger museum in Denmark is discussed. Michael Ryder comments about the lack of finds of textiles at the Iron Age hillfort of Danebury (UK). Comparing the fi nds of sheep bones and textile implements with those found at other Iron Age sites, he ventures a suggestion as to the use of these implements and the type of fleece present. He notes the need for research into the spinning of different types of fleece with different weights of spindle whorl as an aid in interpreting finds of whorls at archaeological sites. Hopefully, current work being conducted by Eva Andersson of Lund together with the Textile Workshop at the Historical-Archaeological Research Centre at Lejre, Denmark, will shed some light on this.
Table of Contents From the Editorial Board
Textiles from the Grave of Rudolph I of Hapsburg, King of Bohemia, Called Ka�e Costumes for a Chieftain Couple at Ribes Vikinger Museum Comment
Fleece Types and Iron Age Textiles Housing Small Archaeological Textiles
Autumn 1997
4
Reconstruction
Conservation
Archaeological Textiles Newsletter, No. 25
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Editorial Analysis
8 13 17
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Analysis Textiles from the Grave of Rudolph I of Hapsburg, King of Bohe mia, Called Kase In December 1991, as part of a programme of examination and conservation of the remains of important historic individuals, the tomb in the Royal Vault in St. Vitus' Cathedral with the remains of Rudolph of Hapsburg, Duke of Austria (d. 1290), Rudolph I of Hapsburg, King of Bohemia called Ka.Se ("Porridge", d. 1307), and Archduchess Eleanora, daughter of Maximilian 11 (d. 1580) was opened. These remains had shared a common coffin since 1935; previously they had lain separately. Both Rudolphs, who are closely associated with the history of Bohemia, were originally buried somewhere in the central area of the Roman Basilica of St. Vitus at Prague Castle. In 1373, they were transferred to the Chapel of Saints Simon and Jude in the newly built Gothic Cathedral of St. Vitus. Both graves were marked with lead plates at that time. The chapel, however, was later consecreated to the Holy Rood, and as the original name became forgotten, so too was the resting place of the two Rudolphs. The graves were rediscovered by accident in 1870. From the first wooden coffin, a sword was recovered from Rudolph of Hapsburg, Duke of Austria. The remains of the skeleton and other items had already completely deteriorated. In the second coffin, that of Rudolph I of Hapsburg, King of Bohemia, called Ka.Se, fragments of bones were found together with textiles and gilded silver funerary coronation jewels.
Before the textiles were taken to Switzerland, they were submitted to archival, historical, art historical and textile technological analysis. To protect all who came in contact with the textiles during the project, microbiological analysis of the fragments was carried out. Results indicated the presence of some pathogenic fungi and microorganisms. Appropriate protection was provided for the researchers. The textile technological analysis revealed six different fabric types among the textiles. Two were made by the Iampas technique. A golden pattern was woven with leather laces, with the outer side gilded and the reverse silvered. The ground of the fabric was originally a light natural colour. The first fabric was decorated with motifs of water birds with their heads turned to the ground, alternating left and right, and holding a twig in their beaks. The other fabric was decorated with motifs of Chinese dragons and clouds. Both fabrics were woven in Central Asia in the late 13th or early 14'h century, and the male costume tunic, surcoat and cloak - was constructed from these. The third fabric was samitum with a silver patterned weft with a linen warp, originally in red and yellow. The fabric was decorated with lines of regularly re-
After the remains and textiles were examined, they were reburied, but the inscription plates, coronation jewels and sword were not. The grave was opened again in 1929, and in 1935, both the Hapsburgs and Archduchess Eleanora were reburied in a divided tin coffin which was placed in the Royal Vault in St. Vitus Cathedral. In 1991, the grave was opened for the last time as part of a larger anthropological research project. Upon completion, the remains were placed back in the tomb in the Royal Vault, but without the textiles. Closer examination revealed that the textile fragments represented an exceptionally valuable find, because they belonged to the Bohemian king, who died at the beginning of the 14'h century. The office of the President of the Czech Republic engaged the W. Abegg Foundation in Switzerland for collaboration in the garments' restoration.
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Figure
1
Patterned fabric of shroud and headcloth.
Archaeological Textiles Newsletter, No. 25
Autumn 1997
Figure
2
The original surcoat of Rudolph
I.
peated rhombuses with birds and hexagons and the figure of a leaping lion (Fig 1 ). The absence of any cut edges led to the conclusion that this was the shroud. In comparison with other similar fabrics, it was identified as Spanish in origin from the second half of the l31h century.
Due to the extreme brittleness of the original fabrics, it was necessary to flatten the garments into their assumed shape on panels covered by glass sheets, and make copies of them. The copies were constructed from fabrics with both Central Asian motifs, but these were printed, not woven.
The three remaining fabrics were silk and without any decoration. The first was used for a pillow, the second served for the l ining of the tunic and surcoat and the third formed a cap to wear beneath the crown.
The dead Bohemian king, Rudolph I, wore an almost complete male costume: tunic, surcoat and cloak. The cloak had a semicircular shape, with a tail at the back. The cloak was sewn from the Central Asian
Figure 3 The original tunic of Rudolph
Archaeological Textiles Newsletter, No. 25
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Autumn 1997
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Figure 4 The original cloak of Rudolph
I.
Figure 5 Copy offuneral garment of Rudolph I.
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Archaeological Textiles Newsletter, No. 25
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fabric patterned with the dragon motifs (Fig 4). It was not lined, but the fabric with the bird motifs was inserted in the reverse of the tail. The inside of the cloak must have been very impressive. The silvered wefts from the back of the outer fabric were seen on the unlined inside, and the tail was lined with a different fabric. The cloak was fastened by two brooches linked by a chain or lace. The semicircular cloak was the typical outer garment of the medieval gentleman and lady. Under the cloak, Rudolph I wore a tunic and surcoat. The tunic was sewn from the Central Asian fabric with the dragon motifs (Fig 3). The sleeves widened at the wrists. According to the reconstruction, the tunic was very short, but this doesn' t fully correspond with the study of contemporary iconographic sources. Such short tunics were worn mostly by the lower classes at that time, not by the nobility such as the king. A back section shows a short slit, and it is narrowed at the waist, by which means the close fit was achieved. This detail was very modem, because until now it has been thought that the close-fitting waist was achieved by inserting a wedge. The front consisted of two pieces, which were probably sewn together originally. The surcoat was constructed of three pieces (Fig 2). The back piece is made of the bird-motif fabric and is slightly trapezoidal in shape. Both side sections, cut from the dragon fabric, continue around the body to form the front. The surcoat was sleeveless. It was a garment worn by both women and men, the men put it on over their armour. It is assumed that the dead king wore breeches, chemise, and boots. These items, however, were not found. Another garment which was, was a cap worn beneath the crown, was made from two textile hemispheres, each constructed of three pieces. The king had a rectangular-shaped pillow under his head and he was covered with a headcloth. The preserved funerary garments of Rudolph I represent a unique document of medieval dress (Fig 5). The garments were luxurious, but secular. Until now, we have not had preserved secular garments dating from before the beginning of the second half of the 14'h century (the jupon of Edward Plantagnet, so-called Black Prince, the doublet of Charles de Blois, and the jupon from the Cathedral in Charte). These male jupons represent the new style of fashion, used only in the second half of the 14• century. Their characteristic features are their close-fitting nature, front sections fastened by buttons, short length and narrow sleeves. From the reconstruction of Rudolph l's tunic, it seems that some of these details had appeared already. There are only a few original fragments of the tunic, so the reconstructed shape may be disputable. There are many more fragments of
Archaeological
Textiles Newsletter, No. 25
Autumn
1997
the cloak and surcoat, so there is less doubt about the reconstructed shapes of these. In contemporary iconographic sources, kings are usually pictured in monarch' s robes, i.e. in an ecclesiastical robe, a cape and a long dalmatic or tunicella. Rudolph I' s garments are a luxury royal robe designed for stately occasions and recreation. Two analologies are the funerary garments of the Kings of Castille and Leon in Las Huelgas Monastery in Burgos dating from the second half of the 13'h century, and the funerary garments of Cangrande I della Scala, who was buried in Verona in 1329. A similar cap worn beneath the crown has been preserved in the burial place of the Staufs in Speyer in the tomb of Henry IV, who died in the year 1106. Due to the lack of preserved written sources we can not ascertain when and for which occasion Rudolph I had this garment made. It does not seem probable that it was simply a funerary costume made in haste. Kings were normally buried in monarch' s robes, but Rudolph I reigned for only a short time, his life ending prematurely during a military campaign. He did not even have time to be crowned in St. Vitus Cathedral at Prague Castle. Surely a coronation robe would have been commissioned for such an occasion. It is assumed he did not have a coronation costume; therefore, was dressed for his coffin in ceremonial, but secular attire. Nevertheless, his widow had the funerary coronation jewels made for him. It is conjecture that Rudolph I brought his garment to Bohemia. He may have acquired it at the time of his first marriage to the French Princess Blanche of Valois, who died in 1305. France dictated fashion trends at that time. The events at which Rudolph I may have worn the ceremonial attire were in October 1306 when he received on oath of allegiance of Bohemia nobles and married his second wife, Elizabeth Richenza, and on 18. January 1307 when he received the oath of allegiance of the Moravian Estates in Znojmo.
Dr Milena Bravermanovd Prague Castle Administration 1 19 08 Prague - Hrad Czech Republic
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Reconstruction Costu mes for a Chieftain Couple at Ribes Vikinger Museu m During the latter part of 1994, the Ribe Vikingecenter (Ribe, Denmark) had the task of making costumes for a Viking chieftain and his lady. These were for the permanent exhibition at the then developing Viking museum in Ribe - Ribes Vikinger. Ribe is Denmark's oldest named city, and in 1 973 an 8 th century Viking market-place was discovered in the city centre (Fig I). This marketplace was well-organised by AD 720 with plots on both sides of a street. Merchants and craftsmen went there to trade for more than a hundred years (Jensen 1991 ). As no trace has been found of substantial buildings but only of huts and small pit houses, the market-place can hardly have operated throughout the year. It was presumably a seasonal affair where there was no activity during the winter, and where trading culminated in the markets held once or twice a year.
The initiative for creating costumes for Ribes Vikinger came from Flemming Bau, the museum' s exhibition designer. His colour illustration in Skalk (Bau 1983 : 17) was taken as the starting point for the woman' s costume (Fig 2), along with a drawing by the textile specialist Inga Hagg's of a man' s costume (Fig 3 ). These two sources provided some information about fabric type and quality, and this was complemented by consulting source material from, for example, Birka (Sweden) and Haithabu/Hedeby (Germany)(H .
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