An orphrey, also spelt orfrey or orfray, is a form of often highly detailed
embroidery
Embroidery is the art of decorating Textile, fabric or other materials using a Sewing needle, needle to stitch Yarn, thread or yarn. It is one of the oldest forms of Textile arts, textile art, with origins dating back thousands of years across ...
, in which typically simple materials are made into complex patterns.
Orphreys are broad bands used on priests' albs and knights' robes. In 1182 and 1183
Henry II of England
Henry II () was King of England
The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with the ...
spent lavishly on orphreys.
[The Mercery of London, Anne F. Sutton, p. 9] The word comes from Old French ''orfreis'', from Late Latin ''auriphrygium'', from Latin ''aurum'' "gold" and ''Phrygius'' "Phrygian," as the
Phrygians were known for their needlework with gold and silver threads.
Orphrey bands are often worn on clerical
vestment
Vestments are Liturgy, liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christianity, Christian religion, especially by Eastern Christianity, Eastern Churches, Catholic Church, Catholics (of all rites), Lutherans, and Anglicans. ...
s, a tradition that began in the
12th-century Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
. The bands are placed vertically, and may be of rich fabrics, such as gold lace,
cloth of gold
Cloth of gold or gold cloth (Latin: ''Tela aurea'') is a textile, fabric woven with a gold-wrapped or spinning (textiles), spun weft—referred to as "a spirally spun gold strip". In most cases, the core yarn is silk, wrapped (''filé'') with a ...
,
velvet
Velvet is a type of woven fabric with a dense, even pile (textile), pile that gives it a distinctive soft feel. Historically, velvet was typically made from silk. Modern velvet can be made from silk, linen, cotton, wool, synthetic fibers, silk ...
or
silk
Silk is a natural fiber, natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be weaving, woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is most commonly produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoon (silk), c ...
, embroidered or decorated with
jewels and enamels.
The finest examples of orphrey can take hundreds of hours of work and sell for thousands of
dollar
Dollar is the name of more than 25 currencies. The United States dollar, named after the international currency known as the Spanish dollar, was established in 1792 and is the first so named that still survives. Others include the Australian d ...
s.
References
External links
Picture of an orphrey(Archived: 17 July 2012)
Embroidery
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