Art Institute of Chicago

Altar Frontal

Spain or Italy

Date

1480-1550

Medium

Silk, warp-float faced 3:1 'Z' twill weave with supplementary discontinuous facing brocading wefts forming areas of weft loops (known as bouclé) tied by secondary binding warps in weft-float faced 3:1 twill interlacing and supplementary pile warps forming cut, pile on pile, voided velvet

Culture

Spain

Department

Textiles

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Velvets fabrics often formed the foundation for the most sumptuous liturgical textiles used by European clergy. The altar frontal, a cloth that covers the front of the altar table, was once decorated with embroidery and it was likely part of a coordinating set of liturgical objects that include priests’ apparel and accessories. Variations of this popular velvet pattern were woven in both Italy and Spain and produced for many decades. A kaftan made of this design was part of the vast wardrobe of the Ottoman Sultan Ahmed I (r. 1603–17).

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