Examples of Medieval Textile Patterns
Truly, medieval textiles, rather than those in the style of, are not nearly as numerous as we would wish them to be. There are a number of reasons why this should be so. Apart from the obvious length of time between the medieval period and our own, there is also the fact that until recent times the idea of throwing away anything that could not be reused and recycled was not even a consideration. The same was certainly true for textiles, particularly those used domestically.
Medieval wall hangings for example, were often used until obviously threadbare. They were then cut up into smaller segments and used for various other domestic tasks including upholstery, the better kept pieces taking a more prominent position. The original large hangings would, over the years, become increasingly smaller and smaller until they literally disintegrated.
To be fair, a number of good examples of medieval textile design do survive. However, a ready supply of imagery, giving a plethora of textile pattern work, or at least a strong indication as to how much of the rich textile design work was available and how it looked, both as a design and within a setting, can be seen through the use of illustrations in medieval manuscripts.
This article was originally published in the Design, Decoration, Craft Blog.
