Textile, Brocade

Art Historical Context

This exquisite 15th-century Italian bro textile, a small fragment measuring just 4½ × 4⅞ inches, showcases the opulence of Renaissance-era weaving. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Medieval Department (acquired through the Rogers Fund in 9), it exemplifies the luxurious textiles produced in Italy's renowned weaving centers, where silk satins were elevated with shimmering gold threads to create designs that caught the light like jewelry. Brocade technique involves a supplementary weft—here, intricate gold threads woven over a satin ground—to form raised, embossed patterns, lending a ...