The Larkspur Project is a historical embroidery recreation project, supported by a Janet Arnold grant from the Society of Antiquaries of London and created by members of BAC Stitch (the Bacton Altar Cloth Research Group). It is a collaborative, group project, the purpose of which is to examine the creative and technical processes involved in the construction of the Bacton Altar Cloth (BAC), a unique Elizabethan embroidered textile survival. The project will focus on recreating a single motif from this embroidery: the larkspur.

What is the Bacton Altar Cloth?

The Bacton Altar Cloth (BAC) is a unique example of very high-quality, large scale, late sixteenth-century English embroidery. It is worked in polychrome silks and gold-wrapped threads on an unusual ground fabric of white ribbed silk and silver. The embroidered fabric has been cut and reworked several times during its long life; its current shape is that of a table cover. This was used as an altar cloth for many years in the church of St Faith’s in the  village of Bacton, in Herefordshire.

Conserved by Historic Royal Palaces and shown in a special exhibition with the ‘Rainbow’ portrait of Elizabeth I in 2018/2019, the BAC has since been a very popular exhibit, touring numerous locations around the country. It has touched the hearts of the public, creating a positive curiosity about the stories behind it. The unparalleled skill and beauty of its execution has also raised interest in the artistic lives of the professional embroiderers who created it, and inspired several recreations of the embroidery by textile artists and students. In uncovering more of the story of the BAC and its makers, this project will help continue to engage the public with such previously untold stories, helping to evolve the narrative of our material heritage in a positive way for future generations. By recording information about the making processes involved, it will also provide new information about the BAC that can’t be obtained from documentary evidence alone.

The purpose of the project is to test several theories about the way the original embroidery was created. To create the embroidery, participants will be sent materials, and work from home. The project will result in lots of larkspurs stitched by lots of people, which will be exhibited together at the end of the project, and a journal article sharing the results of the experiment.

Participate

If you would like to join and contribute to the project please email the project coordinator Natalie Bramwell-Booth. We’re looking for people of varying abilities so even if you don’t have much experience doing historical embroidery still apply please. Email:

nataliebramwellbooth@gmail.com