Orphrey

Art Historical Context

This exquisite 15th-century Germanphrey, a narrow embroidered band crafted from silk and shimmering silver thread, once adorned ecclesiastical vestments like chasubles worn by clergy during Mass. Measuring over 41 inches long and 6½ inches wide, its elongated form was designed to edge sacred garments, transforming them into symbols of divine splendor. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Medieval Department, it exemplifies the era's masterful textile arts, acquired through the Frederick C. Hewitt Fund in 1914. The embroidery bursts with vivid imagery: soldiers clad in armor, wielding sh...