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A Treasure Found -
A Treasure Found -
Right Angle Weave bags from the 1600's
Right Angle Weave bags from the 1600's
Beaded leather bag, 1630s, British; inscribed ‘heare et is hit or miss’, acorn pattern
A number of beaded bags from the early 17th century survive. Their stylized floral patterns and less expensive materials imitate the elaborate embroidered versions carried by the aristocracy. Many bare mottos or expressions relating to charity, friendship or luck, which suggests that they may have been used for gifts of money. This example is inscribed ‘heare et is hit or miss’.
The development of the ‘drawn-glass’ technique about 1490 allowed the manufacture of large numbers of small, round, coloured beads with a central hole, of the type used in this purse. The glassworks on the island of Murano near Venice were the most famous during the Renaissance, but by the early 17th century the technology had spread to glass-making centres in Amsterdam and Bavaria. Beads were produced mainly for trade with North America and Africa, but they were also sold in Europe for use in embroidery.
The expression ‘hit or miss’ is first recorded in the English language in William Shakespeare’s play Troilus and Cressida published in 1606, where it has the same meaning of random luck that it has today. The expression may have derived from a country dance also known as ‘hit and miss’, recorded as early as 1626.
Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no): John Lea Nevinson, Catalogue of English Domestic Embroidery of the Sixteenth & Seventeenth Centuries, Victoria and Albert Museum, Department of Textiles, London: HMSO, 1938, p.100
Bibliographic References (Citation, Note/Abstract, NAL no): John Lea Nevinson, Catalogue of English Domestic Embroidery of the Sixteenth & Seventeenth Centuries, Victoria and Albert Museum, Department of Textiles, London: HMSO, 1938, p.100
While perusing the Electronic files for examples of Gold Work in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England, I happened upon the above beaded bag with the lettering of "Hit or Miss" on the front and "Heare It is". After sitting and analyzing the bag I realized with confidence this was RAW - Right Angle Weave which I had taught for many years. I reached out to another SCA member located in the Middle Kingdom and owner of Medievalbeads.com, a trusted resource owned by Jen Funk Segrest (aka - The HLady Grizzel). She had attended one of my Zoom classes for Bead Embroidery for the University of Atlantia and we both held each other in high regard after that meeting. We had been dialoging on and off, but I really wanted to discuss the beading technique of this bag and confirm that I was evaluating this Right Angle Weave. Jen confirmed and after additional research by not only Jen but myself, she now has six of these bags on her website and I have located a second "Hit or Miss" with a different design under the wording as shown below. In the meantime, Jen had just been approached by a Auction House in England to personally bid and purchase another such bag with a very vivid array of characters and lettering. She was successful and the bag was received last week in the first week of August 2024. We had been dialoging closely about questions I had in the construction of the example she would received to include bead sizes, which I will share further down, but also associated threads used - she also confirmed the kid leather and two other stitches. The entire piece was done in one long panel and then securly sewn onto the kid leather. I will include her reveal and verification of bead size for reference and review.
My reason for my curiosity about these bags was as follows:
The Right Angle Weave technique was not considered historical (or period), and I had been told on numerous occasions that the bead weaving processes from our time period were not used in the 1400-1700's. I am learning by consistent research that, that is not correct and will endeavor to seek and document.
The beads have been confirmed to be our current bead size 11 seed beads in specific colors that would have been available through trade from Murano, Italy. As well as the research showing the transfer of Murano canes to Bavaria for processing to assist in local trade.
And finally, I am always amazed at how advance our ancestors were in construction and art.
I will always reference historical pieces shown first on http://medievalbeads.com/ and then from each respective museum as they are used for analysis.
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