Our Velvet Dalmatic collection is inspired by a piece of a 15th-century velvet dalmatic. A dalmatic is a tunic with wide sleeves worn as part of liturgical vestments and by British monarchs during coronation services. Velvets like these were originally woven on a special loom that created two thicknesses at the same time in order to achieve their marvellously soft texture and high pile. It was an expensive and painstaking procedure, making velvet one of the most highly prized luxury fabrics of the Renaissance.The original velvet panel reproduced here was given to the Metropolitan Museum of Art as part of the Rogers Fund in 1945. It was one of a pair that was once owned by Marczell von Nemes, a Hungarian art financier, collector and dealer. This particular design is patterned using brocaded gilt metal thread in a seven-lobed shield outlined with teardrops, an artichoke-like botanical shape and tiny floral patterns.
