italian version

FILO FORME anno 5 n. 13

PRESENTATION
Maria Beatrice Bertone

This issue presents three articles demonstrating how liturgical vestments are the principle means in Italy for preserving and transmitting most of today’s textile heritage. Holy vestments are ecclesiastical objects, and as such are part of ecclesiastical heritage in many churches. Often, the main tool for investigating the history and aggregate of liturgical vestments is archival research, and this research is important whether the object is present or if it is no longer extant in the context of the sacred building. Archival investigation is multi-faceted in providing information on the objects, and it is necessary to work with the documents using interdisciplinary tools and approaches. Vestments constitute important references in the documents of the period or for the history of the building where they are conserved; they can provide information about the individuals who wore or donated them, often setting foundations for further research or display options. In this context, whether textile or embroidery, the cultural property is enhanced and preserved by proposals for its conservation and preservation. Over the centuries, and not limited to any specific period, these objects were handed-down under many different conditions that often resulted in the loss, or varying levels of conservation, of the vestments.
It is clear that study and research in the restoration sector must be able to effectively co-ordinate with historical investigation on the object being treated in order to bring about appropriate conservation methodologies. One of the most appropriate and effective means in promoting development in the sector is on-going research, constantly comparing and contrasting with known objects. This is necessary because the general public views liturgical vestments in different ways. To the extent that research, study, and exhibitions are increasingly complete or competent both scientifically and technically, the better we can work together for the promotion and enhancement of textile heritage.

An investigative model using ecclesiastical source documents on liturgical vestments from the mid 1500s and early 1600s
Michela Cimolino (page 3)

The aim of this study is to provide an evaluative and investigative tool for studying the history of liturgical vestments. The model concentrates on specific historical and territorial parameters, demonstrating the usefulness in using the history of pastoral visits as sources of information on textiles and vestments. The analysis of the documents is both effective and important in making direct comparisons with those objects referred to in the historic writings and still present in the churches.
The analysis is also helpful in those cases where the church referred to in the document no longer possesses objects contemporary to the document itself.

Vestments and Patriarchs. A new textile exhibition at the Museum of the Duomo in Udine
Maria Beatrice Bertone (page 10)

A new textile exhibition at the Museum of the Duomo in Udine, Italy, is concentrated around religious textiles from the 17th and 18th centuries. Technical and stylistic types from textile production and embroidery are illustrated in the religious vestments donated by the Dolfin family patriarchs. The collection exemplifies the history of ecclesiastical clothing, ranging from various types of celebratory garments to the accessories used in the liturgy. The exhibit documents the use of the individual objects during liturgical celebrations in past periods. The exhibition connects to the rooms in the Museum housing the funerary trousseau of the Patriarch Bertando of Saint Gèniés (13th – 15th centuries), creating a truly unique overview of textile history in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region.

Study, research and restoration of embroidery in Italy
Flavia Fiori, Maria Beatrice Bertone (page 13)

On 24 September 2005, a nationally significant study day was held at San Giulio Island on Lago d’Orta in the province of Novara, Italy. Textile scholars, researchers, and restorers met at the Abbey on the Island to discuss various topics dealing with embroidery. Special attention was given to completed and on-going restoration projects.

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