Burse
c1450 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This burse of red velvet brocaded with silver-gilt thread in a pattern of conventional foliage is lined with red silk. The top bears a cross which has been couched on in open gilt braid. A burse is a wallet-like container used during Christian Mass in order to carry the corporal (linen cloth) to the altar. The sacraments (wine and bread) were then laid on corporal on the altar. As a result, the corporal must be treated with reverence, hence the protective burse.
In Roman form the burse is usually made of two pieces of cardboard about twenty-five centimetres (or ten inches) square, bound together at three edges, leaving the fourth open to receive the corporal. One outer side of the burse is of the same material and colour as the vestments (priestly garments) with which it is used; the rest is lined with linen or silk. The use of the burse dates back to the 12th century.
The red velvet ground of Italian origin is an ideal foil for the high quality English embroidery (called opus anglicanum, the Latin for English work), which was sought after throughout Europe and bought by princes and popes in the Middle Ages. Items like this one illustrate the sumptuous and costly textiles which were favoured by the Christian church, often given by wealthy donors, making a conspicuous show of both earthly wealth and spiritual devotion.
In Roman form the burse is usually made of two pieces of cardboard about twenty-five centimetres (or ten inches) square, bound together at three edges, leaving the fourth open to receive the corporal. One outer side of the burse is of the same material and colour as the vestments (priestly garments) with which it is used; the rest is lined with linen or silk. The use of the burse dates back to the 12th century.
The red velvet ground of Italian origin is an ideal foil for the high quality English embroidery (called opus anglicanum, the Latin for English work), which was sought after throughout Europe and bought by princes and popes in the Middle Ages. Items like this one illustrate the sumptuous and costly textiles which were favoured by the Christian church, often given by wealthy donors, making a conspicuous show of both earthly wealth and spiritual devotion.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Velvet brocaded with silver-gilt thread |
| Brief description | Burse, lined on both sides with crimson silk velvet, brocaded with gilt metal threads, c1450, Italian |
| Physical description | Both the obverse and the reverse of the burse is entirely made of crimson velvet, which pattern is achieved by covering the areas that would otherwise be left voided (clear of the pile warp, with the ground weave clearly visible) with supplementary (brocading) gilt-metal weft. The main motifs are additionaly enriched and enchanced by creating the boucle loops with the supplementary (brocading) weft. The metal braids used for the cross and the trimmings date from the late 17th or early 18th century. The burse is a part of the set of vestments that comprises of the chasuble, stole, maniple and the chalice veil; LOAN:ENG.DOMINICAN.1, 1A, 1B, 1C |
| Dimensions |
|
| Style | |
| Production type | Unique |
| Credit line | Lent by the Dominicans of the English Province |
| Object history | On long term loan to the museum from The English Dominican Province, St. Dominic's Priory, Haverstock Hill, London, NW5; as of 1977. The burse is part of a set made of the same velvet, consisting of chasuble, stole, maniple and chalice veil. The chasuble is decorated with embroidered orphreys, and the chalice veil is decorated with gold and silver bobbin lace of the 17th century. Historical significance: This particular burse is still connected with other parts of the set to which it belonged: chasuble, maniple, stole and chalice veil. The embroidery is of extremely high quality. |
| Historical context | The burse is the receptacle in which the folded corporal is carried to and from the altar, for reasons of convenience and reverence. The corporal being a square white linen cloth, upon which the Sacred Host and chalice are placed during the celebration of Mass. In Roman form the burse is ordinarily made of two pieces of cardboard about twenty-five centimetres (or ten inches) square, bound together at three edges, leaving the fourth open to receive the corporal. One outer side of the burse is of the same material and colour as the vestments with which it is used; the rest is lined with linen or silk. The use of the burse dates from the 12th century. When the corporal reached small dimensions, it was carried to the altar, sometimes in the missal, sometimes in a special receptacle, a box or bag, which finally took the present form of burse. Just when this custom began cannot be determined. Chronicon vetus rerum Moguntinarum (1140-1251) mentions a precious corporal-case; this may have been, however, only a box for the continual safe-keeping of the corporal. St. Charles Borromeo describes a sacculus corporali distinct from the case in which corporals were preserved (Acta Mediolan, 1683, I, 524). From the fourteenth to the seventeenth centuries the use of the burse spread, and in 1692 it was universally illicit to celebrate Mass without one (Decreta S.R.C, 1866, ad 2m). |
| Production | Middle of the fifteenth century |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | This burse of red velvet brocaded with silver-gilt thread in a pattern of conventional foliage is lined with red silk. The top bears a cross which has been couched on in open gilt braid. A burse is a wallet-like container used during Christian Mass in order to carry the corporal (linen cloth) to the altar. The sacraments (wine and bread) were then laid on corporal on the altar. As a result, the corporal must be treated with reverence, hence the protective burse. In Roman form the burse is usually made of two pieces of cardboard about twenty-five centimetres (or ten inches) square, bound together at three edges, leaving the fourth open to receive the corporal. One outer side of the burse is of the same material and colour as the vestments (priestly garments) with which it is used; the rest is lined with linen or silk. The use of the burse dates back to the 12th century. The red velvet ground of Italian origin is an ideal foil for the high quality English embroidery (called opus anglicanum, the Latin for English work), which was sought after throughout Europe and bought by princes and popes in the Middle Ages. Items like this one illustrate the sumptuous and costly textiles which were favoured by the Christian church, often given by wealthy donors, making a conspicuous show of both earthly wealth and spiritual devotion. |
| Associated objects |
|
| Bibliographic reference | King, Donald. Opus Anglicanum : English medieval embroidery, London, Arts Council,1963
no. 117 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | LOAN:ENG.DOMINICAN.1D |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | December 1, 2005 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest
