Pair of gloves

The highly skilled maker who executed these gloves chose an intricate design—floral yet geometric—that alludes to the more simple versions found in early seventeenth century pattern books. As scholars have pointed out, pattern books for needlework and lacemaking, which were marketed towards women of the middling classes, presented an opportunity for upward mobility at a time when wealth was partially measured in fine possessions.

The elite classes might hire artists and professionals to design and carry out, and thus distinguish their own embroidered goods. This pair of gloves features French knots, couching and raised work on purple satin in colored silk, silver and gilded silver thread, further ornamented with spangles and bobbin lace. The rich coloring and metallic details would have made a dramatic impression as they caught the light; the color palette is repeated in a later pair in the museum’s collection (2003.461a, b).


-Sarah Bochicchio, 2020