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Chasuble: Italy, Florence Orphrey Cross: Bohemia or Germany

Chasuble Front with Orphrey Cross

Chasuble: 15th century; Orphrey Cross: 1401/50
Chasuble: silk and metal-wrapped thread, brocaded silk velvet with two heights of silk pile, and metal-wrapped threat boucle. Orphrey Cross: silk and metal-wrapped thread, embroidered in flat and padded couching stitches and split stitches on linen plain weave foundation.
126.6 × 70.5 cm (49.8 × 27.8 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

Although this chasuble (a priest's outer garment) is incomplete, its richly embroidered cross, known as an orphrey, remains intact. It features five saints, with Saint George and the slain dragon at center, and was probably used in Bohemia or Germany, where the embroidery was done. The combination of sumptuous velvet and embroidery is typical of 15th-century religious attire. These luxurious velvets were exported from the Italian peninsula to other European countries, as well as to the Ottoman Empire.

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