Insights into the Production of Opus Anglicanum: An Object Analysis of Two Panels from the Pillar Orphreys on the Whalley Abbey Altar Frontal

Abstract

It has long been noted that there was a decline in the standards of English embroidery from the mid-fourteenth century onwards. A combination of the Black Death, wars, overseas competition and economic stresses have all been recognised as possible reasons for the loss in quality of these embroideries. This article analyses the production techniques employed by artists/designers and embroiderers during the declining period of Opus Anglicanum, a style of embroidery typical of the late medieval period, which was almost always professional work. The discussion focuses on two lower panels of the pillar orphreys on the Whalley Abbey altar frontal, which date from around 1400 and belong to Towneley Hall Museum and Art Gallery, Burnley, UK. The article suggests that similarities in the design of the two panels provide a glimpse into the time-saving solutions developed by embroiderers to produce Opus Anglicanum as its manufacturing quality deteriorated.