Tag: Dalby

NOW: Morakarlen’s Brown Exhibition Mittens

In the 1750’s, Erik Säterbeck crafted a beautiful pair of long mittens for the Vasa museum at Ornässtugan, commissioned by Jacob Brandberg. Made of brown and white wool, with intricate red embroidery, these mittens were displayed for 200 years before going to the Livrustkammaren’s conservation studio in the 1950s. They are now in Stockholm’s Livrustkammern.

It’s not often that we know the name of the person that nalbound a particular artifact. Especially not for an artifact made in the 18th century. However, this week’s Nalbound Object of the Week is a beautiful pair of long mittens made in the 1750’s by Erik Säterbeck. The mittens were commissioned by Jacob Brandberg to accompany the Morakarlen’s robes made for the Vasa museum he established in the Ornässtugan where Gustav Vasa ostensibly spent the night during his time in Dalarna in the early 1520’s.1 The mittens were on display for around 200 years before they were sent to the Livrustkammaren’s conservation studio in the 1950’s.

Credit: Livrustkammaren, Livrustkammaren/SHM (CC0)

Object: Brown and white, embroidered mittens for the Morakarl exhibition.

Description: Long, brown wool mittens, with a wider white cuff embroidered with red thread in a wide band. The mittens are just under 26 inches long, 660 mm, and just under 9 1/2 wide, 240 mm.2

Dated to: 1750’s CE3

Find location: Ornässtugan,4 Sweden

Material: brown and white wool5

Stitch(es) used: Misidentified as knitted6 in the museum catalog, this pair appears to be made using the Dalby stitch, F1 UOU/OUOO, based on the images.7 (Stitch identification by Anne Marie Decker based on photographs)

Credit: Livrustkammaren, Livrustkammaren/SHM (CC0)
Credit: Livrustkammaren, Livrustkammaren/SHM (CC0)
A close-up of the red embroidery on the cuff.
Credit: Livrustkammaren, Livrustkammaren/SHM (CC0)

Additional photos of the embroidery are on SHM’s site here and here.

Inventory number: 19207_LRK and 19208_LRK

Current location: Livrustkammern, Stockholm, Sweden

Link to museum catalog or other data: https://samlingar.shm.se/object/AFAE0473-2929-411A-A72F-7EE307B6A2AA

See also https://samlingar.shm.se/media/71766506-FB55-48D9-8F38-49FCFC684BCF

Some sources in which more information can be found: There is a literature reference in the online catalog and additional literature references as well as additional photos are included in:

De märkliga allmogedräkterna i Ornässtugan.

Photographs:

Morakarlen’s garments, including two pairs of nalbound mittens in the upper left. You can clearly see that the embroidery on the white cuff of the brown mittens is red. Credit: Livrustkammaren, Livrustkammaren/SHM (CC BY 4.0)
Credit: Livrustkammaren, Livrustkammaren/SHM (CC0)

Please note that sharing to other venues will likely be intermittent. If you wish to receive these each week, please remember to follow the blog.
Patrons on Patreon receive early access previews, occasional extra details, and priority requests.

  1. https://samlingar.shm.se/object/AFAE0473-2929-411A-A72F-7EE307B6A2AA and https://kuragehistoria.com/2019/03/14/de-markliga-allmogedrakterna-i-ornasstugan/ both Accessed 3 June 2024 ↩︎
  2. https://samlingar.shm.se/object/AFAE0473-2929-411A-A72F-7EE307B6A2AA Accessed 3 June 2024 ↩︎
  3. https://samlingar.shm.se/object/AFAE0473-2929-411A-A72F-7EE307B6A2AA Accessed 3 June 2024 ↩︎
  4. https://samlingar.shm.se/object/AFAE0473-2929-411A-A72F-7EE307B6A2AA Accessed 3 June 2024 ↩︎
  5. https://samlingar.shm.se/object/AFAE0473-2929-411A-A72F-7EE307B6A2AA Accessed 3 June 2024 ↩︎
  6. “Stickad” https://samlingar.shm.se/object/AFAE0473-2929-411A-A72F-7EE307B6A2AA Accessed 3 June 2024 ↩︎
  7. https://samlingar.shm.se/media/3A307160-92C5-424B-BE42-2F23080D153D and https://samlingar.shm.se/media/11D6D624-8F96-48AB-BBBB-6A4559126F32 Accessed 3 June 2024 ↩︎

NOW: Nidaros Stocking N11979

Having had an excuse to go to Norway, I had to go to Trondheim to see our next Nalbound Object of the Week. Found in a pre-1300 CE context, the Nidaros stocking is one of the earliest knee length nalbound stockings found.

The stocking is laid out horizontally with the upper portion of the foot to the left of the photograph, toe up. The leg still has folds, but likely reached the knee. A high resolution photo is available via the link in the online catalog. Photo: Ole-Aleksander Ulvik, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet CC BY-SA 4.0

Object: Nidaros Stocking

Description: A nearly complete full stocking from toes to the knee. The sock shows heavy fulling, though if that was intentional or from wear or find circumstances is unknown. There are 4 holes that show evidence of compression near them. The areas away from the holes are a significantly darker color, have a layer of fibers obscuring the nalbinding, and are noticeably stiffer and not flexible.

Dated to: medieval,1 pre-13002

Find location: Field S of the Søndre Gate 4 dig in medieval Nidaros, modernly Trondheim, Norway. More specifically it was found under the floorboards of a pre-1300 house in the wealthy blocks of the city.3

Material: wool4

Stitch(es) used: Further examination is necessary given the condition of the textile. However, the surface texture most closely resembles the stitch known as Dalby, F1 UOU/OUOO.

Inventory number: N11979

Current location: NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet

Link to museum catalog or other data: https://www.unimus.no/portal/#/things/c72c7d23-f49f-4c0b-9bf8-dd67f4fb111e

Some sources in which more information can be found:

In 2020, there was a Facebook post by the Nidaros Archaeological Archive (NIDARK) project with a photograph of the stocking and some information regarding its excavation. I’d share it with you, but within this last year, that post has since disappeared along with all of the rest of the NIDARK Facebook page posts. Nonetheless, that project and its posts led me to this fabulous artifact.

Photographs:

Detail of the cuff of the Nidaros Stocking showing one of the holes.
Photo: Anne Marie Decker 2024
Examination day is always so exciting!
Photo: Anne Marie Decker 2024
The Nidaros Stocking was found in excavations under this street.
Photo: Anne Marie Decker 2024

Acknowledgements: My sincerest thanks to the NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet and especially to Torkel Johansen, Curator, and Frances Lucas Lukezic, Conservator for their assistance during my study visit.

Please note that sharing to other venues will likely be intermittent. If you wish to receive these each week, please remember to follow the blog.
Patrons on Patreon receive early access previews, occasional extra details, and priority requests.

  1. The museum catalog states Medieval, Modern Era https://www.unimus.no/portal/#/things/c72c7d23-f49f-4c0b-9bf8-dd67f4fb111e Accessed 30 March 2024. ↩︎
  2. Per discussions with Torkel Johansen, curator at the Institutt for arkeologi og kulturhistorie, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet during my study visit on 16 April 2024. ↩︎
  3. Per discussions with Torkel Johansen, curator at the Institutt for arkeologi og kulturhistorie, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet during my study visit on 16 April 2024. ↩︎
  4. Gjenstandsbeskrivelse https://www.unimus.no/portal/#/things/c72c7d23-f49f-4c0b-9bf8-dd67f4fb111e Accessed 6 May 2024. ↩︎