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== Further Reading == |
== Further Reading == |
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* Richardson, Ruth Elizabeth, 'Mistress Blanche Queen Elizabeth I's Confidante', second edition 2018, Logaston Press, Eardisley, Herefordshire. |
* Richardson, Ruth Elizabeth, 'Mistress Blanche Queen Elizabeth I's Confidante', (first edition 2007) second edition 2018, Logaston Press, Eardisley, Herefordshire. |
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* Richardson, Ruth Elizabeth, 'Elizabeth I's Earliest Influences: New Discoveries Concerning Blanche Parry, Lady Troy, the Funeral Monuments and the Bacton Altar Cloth', academic paper in 'The Court Historian', May 2020. |
* Richardson, Ruth Elizabeth, 'Elizabeth I's Earliest Influences: New Discoveries Concerning Blanche Parry, Lady Troy, the Funeral Monuments and the Bacton Altar Cloth', academic paper in 'The Court Historian', May 2020. |
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* Lynn, Eleri, 'Tudor Fashion', 2017, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, in association with Historic Royal Palaces. |
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* Arnold, Janet, 'Queen Elizabeth's Wardrobe Unlock'd', 1988, reprinted, 1993, 1996, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2014, Maney. |
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== External links == |
== External links == |
Revision as of 11:09, 17 February 2020
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/07/Bacton_Altar_Cloth_in_St_Faith%2C_Bacton%29.jpg/300px-Bacton_Altar_Cloth_in_St_Faith%2C_Bacton%29.jpg)
The Bacton Altar Cloth is a 16th-century garment that is considered the sole surviving dress of Queen Elizabeth I. The cloth, embroidered in an elaborate floral design and made of cloth of silver, is an important relic of Tudor fashion and luxury trade, containing dyes from as far away as India and Mexico.[1] It was rediscovered in 2015 at St Faith's Church in Bacton, Herefordshire, where it had been used as an altar cloth for centuries. After several years of conservation and restoration, the garment is to be exhibited to the public in 2019 and 2020 along with the Rainbow Portrait.[2]
History of the dress
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/90/Elizabethan_Altar_Cloth%2C_St_Faith%27s_Church%2C_Bacton.jpg/300px-Elizabethan_Altar_Cloth%2C_St_Faith%27s_Church%2C_Bacton.jpg)
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/cf/Elizabeth_I_Rainbow_Portrait.jpg/220px-Elizabeth_I_Rainbow_Portrait.jpg)
The dress dates to late in Queen Elizabeth I's life, when she was nearly 70. It is highly similar to the dress she is depicted wearing in her Rainbow Portrait.
It was believed the garment was given to Bacton by the Queen in memory of Blanche Parry. Parry, from Bacton, was a personal attendant of the Queen, and held the offices of Chief Gentlewoman of the Queen's Most Honourable Privy Chamber and Keeper of Her Majesty's Jewels. Parry, who never married, remained devoted to Elizabeth and was her longest-serving courtier, by her side for 56 years.[3]
In 2015, the garment was rediscovered by Ruth Elizabeth Richardson while researching a biography of Blanche Parry and Lady Troy (who brought up Queen Elizabeth I). Richardson recognised the rarity and importance of the cloth. Subsequently, Eleri Lynn, a curator at the Historic Royal Palaces, when she was researching a book on Tudor fashion, saw Richardson's photos of the cloth online, and met Richardson. The Altar Cloth had survived the centuries as it was considered a sacred object by the parishioners at St Faith's Church in Bacton, where in 1909, it was framed in oak and mounted on the wall above the pews. Nearby is the Blanche Parry Monument, the earliest depiction of the Queen as Gloriana. For 106 years the framed cloth remained on the north wall, away from direct sunlight, which helped preserve the garment from fading. Lynn examined the cloth and discovered it was of extraordinarily high quality, while also observing evidence of pattern cutting that ultimately revealed it had been a dress. Lynn recognised that it is a unique survival, being the only known cloth with direct embroidery from any museum or collection worldwide. [2][3]
Description
The garment is made of cream-coloured silk and Italian cloth of silver.[4] Cloth of silver was, by law, reserved for members of the royal family, which was an early clue of its origin.[3] It was elaborately embroidered with colourful flowers and vegetation in silk, silver and gold thread. Dye used in the embroidery thread included cochineal red from Mexico, evidence of early trade from North America, as well Indian indigo blue traded through Portugal.[2]
References
- ^ "The Bacton Altar Cloth". Historic Royal Palaces. 15 May 2016. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
- ^ a b c "Remnants of Queen Elizabeth I's sole surviving dress discovered in a rural church". CBC. 23 October 2018. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
- ^ a b c "The Lost Dress of Elizabeth I". Historic Royal Palaces. 20 September 2019. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
- ^ Murphy, Victoria (13 October 2019). "How Queen Elizabeth I's Only Surviving Dress Was Discovered in a Rural Church". Town & Country. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
Further Reading
- Richardson, Ruth Elizabeth, 'Mistress Blanche Queen Elizabeth I's Confidante', (first edition 2007) second edition 2018, Logaston Press, Eardisley, Herefordshire.
- Richardson, Ruth Elizabeth, 'Elizabeth I's Earliest Influences: New Discoveries Concerning Blanche Parry, Lady Troy, the Funeral Monuments and the Bacton Altar Cloth', academic paper in 'The Court Historian', May 2020.
- Lynn, Eleri, 'Tudor Fashion', 2017, Yale University Press, New Haven and London, in association with Historic Royal Palaces.
- Arnold, Janet, 'Queen Elizabeth's Wardrobe Unlock'd', 1988, reprinted, 1993, 1996, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2014, Maney.