Today’s post is a translation of A.E. Zhabreva’s article on Russian clothing, as viewed and depicted via pictorial art sources…
Continue ReadingMedieval Russian Embroidery (Majasova, 1971)
This post my translation of the book Medieval Russian Embroidery (Древнерусское шитьё), by Natalia Andreevna Majasova (1919-2005), an expert in this area of study. Over the many years of her career, she was instrumental in the research and transformation of several collections of medieval Russian embroidered works, first at the Zagorsk State Historical-Artistic Museum-Reserve (the Soviet-era museum built on the site of the Trinity-Sergiev Lavra, a famous monastery outside Moscow), and then later with the Museums of the Moscow Kremlin. This book, published in 1971, is a general overview, with over 50 full-color plates showing examples from the major embroidery centers of Moscow and Novgorod from the 15th-16th centuries, a small number of post-period items from the 17th century, and a lengthy introductory article on the subject.
Continue ReadingAn SCA Apprenticing
This year at Great Northeastern War XXXIII, I was very pleased to take Caitrìona O’Siodhachain (modernly known as Kathryn Cranford)…
Continue ReadingRadziwiłł Chronicle-inspired Painted Chest
As described in a prior post, I recently created a gilded, painted box as a gift for my friend and…
Continue ReadingBox Decorated with Cranes
At Great Northeastern War XXXIII this year, I took on my first apprentice in the SCA, Caitrìona O’Siodhachain. As part of the ceremony, I wanted to give her a gift that related to her areas of interest, which include nature, illumination and embroidery. After thinking for a while, I came up with the idea of giving her a box to keep her embroidery materials in, and decorating it with an illuminated image.
Continue ReadingGoldwork Embroidered Laurel Circlet, part 2
In my previous post, I talked about how I started creating my leather laurel circlet. Now that the leather was…
Continue ReadingGoldwork Embroidered Laurel Circlet, part 1
I’ve typically been a bit of a “stealth Laurel,” but after seeing some of the Laurel wreaths worn by my…
Continue ReadingPrince Jaroslav’s Charter on the Ecclesiastical Court
I have been thinking about reading an article on Jaroslav the Wise’s (983-1054) laws which established the independence of the…
Continue ReadingThe Elisavetgrad Gospel
Another SCAdian posted to the SCA scribal list, and mentioned having read of the Elisavetgrad Gospel in an article online…
Continue ReadingAn April Revel
Yesterday, Cwen and I went to April Revel, a little event in Stonemarche, hosted in Jaffrey NH. The site was…
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