Silver Brocade

I’m normally not too fond of brocading, but I had a fit of inspiration/insanity. Probably insanity - I spun the silver weft myself, and am brocading it onto a 3/1 twill design.

silver brocade

Brocaded bands

Metallic brocade on silk bands was the height of ostentatious display for much of the period covered by the SCA (Spies 2000). This was equally true for the Viking-era Scandinavians; many brocaded bands have been recovered from Birka and other trading centers. Metallic brocaded bands were used for decoration on garments and accessories, especially in highly-visible places like headgear and necklines. This band is intended to trim the front of a 10th-century apron dress patterned after women’s garments from southeastern Scandinavia. At Birka, silver-brocaded bands were used to trim women’s clothing, and the rarer gold bands appeared on men’s garments (Hagg, 1983).

The brocading technique uses a separate decorative weft in addition to the weft needed to hold the weave of the band together (Collingwood 1996, Spies 2000). It was very common to find the metallic weft brocaded over the firm ground created by tablet weaving. Most of these bands were plain, with the pattern created solely by the brocading weft, but a few especially complex examples used a brocading weft to augment a pattern woven into the band in two or more colors. Brocaded bands from Birka use either gold or silver wire or spun metals over silk, either plain or in a patterned weave (Geijer 1939, 1980).

Materials

Warp and structural weft are 2/64 filament silk. I dyed it using synthetic dyes that approximate colors obtainable from natural dyes (Liles 1990). Metallic brocades almost always use silk as the warp, although some bands from Birka use silk where it will show in the finished product, and cheaper linen warp where it will be hidden by the brocading weft. The very fine warp is consistent with what has been used for tablet weaving.

The brocading weft is spun silver. I started with 26-gauge fine silver wire, hammered it flat, then annealed it. I spun it in 6-inch sections around a size-B silk core (light gray instead of natural, because I didn’t have any natural of the appropriate size). I experimented with two different ways of spinning the silver: twisting the metal and silk together, and wrapping the metal around the silk core. The first brocaded pattern repeat was done with twisted spun silver, while the second was done with wrapped spun silver.

Spun metallics

Metallic threads have been used for embroidery and brocading for centuries. The earliest known bands with a metal weft, from the 5th c. CE, used strips of pure gold (Bergli and Pedersen 1998). Spun metallics were a later development. The Vikings used spun gold, spun silver and silver wire for brocading. In the 10th c. spun gilded silver came into use because it was more affordable than pure gold. All of the early spun metallics had silk cores, but linen came into use later, again as a cost-saving measure since the core was hidden by the metals. In the 12th c. membrane gold and silver were developed. A thin layer of metal was applied to a membrane backing; thin strips of this were spun onto the silk core.

The metal lamella could have been hammered or rolled from a wire or sheet, then spun around a core (Peacock 1993, Andersson 2003). The artisan would have been working with very small items. The metal strip was about 1 mm wide (Hughes 1990), and the finished thread was only 0.05-0.2 mm in diameter (Lundgren 1975). The scanning electron micrograph in Fig. 1 shows the metal strip wrapped around a silk core.

Methods of construction

Most references that discuss the manufacture of spun metallics state that the ends of the silk core and the metal strip are clamped together, then twisted (e.g. Coatsworth and Pinder 2002). I started with 26-gauge fine silver wire, hammered it flat, then annealed it and repeated both the hammering and the annealing. I spun it in 6-inch sections around a size-B silk core (light gray instead of natural, because I didn’t have any natural of the appropriate size). The silver and silk were clamped together between two pairs of locking pliers, and I rotated one end by hand to wrap the silver around the silk. The line between “enough twist” and “too much twist” is only a few turns, so while it would be possible to use more sophisticated tools, I think that spinning the silver by hand is more effective. Too much twist and the silver breaks, too little and the silk pops out. I found it very difficult to spin sections longer than about 6 inches. The twist doesn’t propagate well through the silver, and it is difficult to keep it smooth even with short lengths. I finished with a light burnishing to smooth any rough edges. The finished product is shown in Fig. 2. The vast majority of period brocaded bands were done with gold or gilt silver instead of plain silver, but I can afford to experiment with silver, but not gold.

The spun silver is much stiffer than any of the commercial metallic threads I have worked with. The spinning process work-hardens the silver, and because my annealing setup uses a torch, I cannot re-soften it without destroying the silk core. When using the spun silver as a brocading weft, the stiffness makes it challenging to get the edges of the band even, and the edges of the silver abrade and break the warp threads. Spun gold would be softer and easier to work with.

I inadvertently used both S- and Z-spun silver wefts. When brocading, the S-spun area seems to be smoother and more regular. I don’t know if this is an interaction from S-spinning of the silver onto the Z-spun silk core, or just a coincidence. Spun-gold and silver brocading wefts from period bands are invariably S-spun.

I wasn’t entirely satisfied with the performance of the twisted spun silk. While it seems that every reference on the subject says to clamp the silk and metal together, then twist, working this way has several drawbacks:

  • It is just about impossible to get the twist evenly distributed.
  • This method is limited to fairly short lengths.
  • The silver strip twists, rather than wrapping flat (as seen in SEM of the originals, compare Fig. 1 and Fig. 2).
  • If you get it just right, part of the metal strip ends up flat, but there always seem to be some bumpy bits.
  • All that twisting work-hardens the metal. This would be much less a problem with gold, but there are plenty of examples of period spun silver (and gilt silver, which would behave similarly).

Further experimenting suggests that actually wrapping the silver around the silk gives a nicer result, and one more like micrographs of period spun metals (compare Fig. 1 and Fig. 3). By weighting the silk core, and only clamping one end together, it is possible to wrap the silver strip around the core at least as quickly as in the twisting method. The resulting spun silver is more flexible and smoother than that made by twisting, so it is easier to work with, and less likely to cut the warp threads. Also, it is possible to make a much longer piece of spun silver because the twist doesn’t need to propagate through the entire metal strip (also why the metal stays more flexible).

The wrapped spun silver is also not completely satisfactory, although it is an improvement. The biggest problem, I think, is that I cannot hammer the wire as thin as needed to make a flexible brocading weft that matches the Viking originals. The weft is described as being as flexible as silk, and mine certainly is not. Because of this stiffness of the silver, it is impossible to get the twist completely evenly distributed around the silk core. Wrapping the silver around the silk instead of twisting them both together does give a result more like preserved spun gold and silver threads. The stiffness of the finished product also makes it impossible to create smooth selvages on the band, since it will not turn 180 degrees very tightly. I plan to continue experimenting with ways to flatten the silver into very thin sheets (access to a rolling mill would be ideal), and with methods for spinning the silver onto a silk core. This project was entirely experimental - few people have experimented with producing spun metals over a silk core, and there is obviously room for improvement.

Figure 1. Scanning electron micrograph of spun-metallic thread from Norway (Peacock 1993).

thread

Figure 2. Spun silver made by twisting metal strip and silk together.

spun thread

Figure 3. Spun silver made by wrapping the metal strip around the silk core.

wound thread

Pattern

The pattern is adapted from a few of the Birka brocading patterns (Geijer 1938, 1983). I wanted a geometric pattern with the feel of the early Scandinavian materials, without duplicating an extant band exactly. There are 18 pattern tablets, and two selvage tablets per side, within the range used in Viking Scandinavia. The pattern draft I developed is available as a PDF chart.

Technique

This band is woven in 3/1 broken twill. Instead of turning the tablets as a pack, 3/1 twill is woven by turning each tablet individually to produce the diagonal twill (Collingwood 1996). Some of the most elaborately patterned tablet-woven bands were woven in this technique, because of the fantastic design possibilities. One particularly impressive example, the girdle of St. Cuthbert from early 10th c. England, is brocaded in gold over a 3/1 broken twill patterned background (Crowfoot 1939). Drafting the pattern is a complex process, as the diagonal lines are only smooth if the color change line matches the twill direction. Care must be taken to make sure that everything matches up correctly.

I converted the Birka brocading patterns into a twill pattern (Fig. 2), and wove it with the pattern in red on a white ground. The brocading weft travels over the white ground, and under the red pattern lines. This gives a particularly nice appearance because only white shows through the silver or is used for tiedowns. The pattern is much clearer than in brocades with a solid-colored background. Unlike most other brocades, the tiedowns are one or two threads depending on the tablet position, to ensure that only red shows over the silver. Many surviving examples of brocade are red, or red and white, possibly because the red shows well against metallics (Spies 2000).

The spun silver is much stiffer than any of the commercial metallic threads I have worked with. The spinning process work-hardens the silver, and because my annealing setup uses a torch, I cannot re-soften it. It is a challenge to get the edges even. I ran the brocading weft through the shed in the selvage tablets. This leaves loops on the edges, but requires less bending of the silver, and is less likely to cut the weft than turning it inside the selvage tablets. Spun gold would be softer and easier to work with. More experience with spinning metallic threads would help me create a more even brocading weft.

Discussion

This is a very tedious process. With a bit of practice, I am now weaving about 3/4 inch per hour. It also requires concentration and attention to detail - the warp catches in the brocading weft, so mistakes cannot be unwoven. The brocading weft also wears on the warps; selvage threads are breaking frequently.

I started by weaving the twill pattern without the brocading weft, both to make sure that the pattern was correct and to compare the appearance of the unbrocaded and brocaded areas. In the first brocaded pattern repeat, I’ve been experimenting with the effects of tension, and with ways to set in the brocade weft. I started out with high tension, but the weaving is smoother with lower tension. The brocading shed can be held open wider with looser tension. If the shed is held wide while the silver weft is set it, then the pattern threads lowered on top of it, the pattern comes out neater. This is necessary because the warp threads catch in the silver instead of sliding into place.

I inadvertently used both S- and Z-spun silver wefts in the first pattern repeat. The S-spun area seems to be smoother and more regular. I don’t know if this is an interaction from S-spinning of the silver onto the Z-spun silk core, or just a coincidence. Spun-gold and silver brocading wefts from period bands are invariably S-spun.

The other experiments in this band were intentional. The first bit has some different trials of tiedown points (where the brocade weft goes under additional warps to hold it in place). One advantage of brocading over a two-color weave is that if the background color matches the color of the brocading weft (in this case white and silver), then the tiedown points are nearly invisible. This does work very nicely, but the band is so narrow that very few tiedowns are actually necessary. I also experimented with both twisted and wrapped variants of spun-silver thread. The twisted silver is stiffer, and has sharper edges, so it tends to wear through the warp threads very quickly. The wrapped silver causes less trouble with breaking warps, but if there are any gaps between the silver wraps the pattern warps tend to slip under the silver and become hidden, creating voids in the red silk pattern.

The flaws in this band come from my inexperience at spinning the silver. Mainly, I cannot hammer the wire as thin as needed to make a flexible brocading weft that matches the Viking originals. The early Scandinavian spun-metallics were uniform in diameter, and 0.05-0.2 mm in diameter (Lundgren 1975). The weft is described as being as flexible as silk, and mine certainly is not. Because of this stiffness of the silver, it is impossible to get the twist completely evenly distributed around the silk core. Wrapping the silver around the silk instead of twisting them both together does give a result more like preserved spun gold and silver threads. The stiffness of the finished product also makes it impossible to create smooth selvages on the band, since it will not turn 180 degrees very tightly. I plan to continue experimenting with ways to flatten the silver into very thin sheets (access to a rolling mill would be ideal), and with methods for spinning the silver onto a silk core. This project was entirely experimental – to the best of my knowledge nobody in the SCA has either experimented with producing spun metals over a silk core or brocading onto 3/1 broken twill, and there is obviously room for improvement.

References

  • Andersson, Eva. 2003. Tools for Textile Production from Birka and Hedeby. Birka Studies 8. Excavations in the Black Earth 1990-1995. Stockholm.

  • Bergli, Aud and Inger Raknes Pedersen. 1998. The Textiles from the Ruins of Hamar Cathedral. NESAT 6, Göteborg University Department of Archaeology.

  • Coatsworth, Elizabeth and Michael Pinder. 2002. The Art of the Anglo-Saxon Goldsmith. Fine Metalwork in Anglo-Saxon England: Its Practice and Practitioners. The Boydell Press, Woodbridge.

  • Collingwood, Peter. 1996. The Techniques of Tablet Weaving. Second edition. Robin and Russ Handweavers, McMinnville, OR.

  • Crowfoot, Grace M. 1939. The tablet-woven braids from the vestments of St. Cuthbert at Durham. The Antiquaries Journal 19:57-80.

  • Geijer, Agnes. 1938. Die Textilfunde aus den Gräbern. Birka: Untersuchungen und Studien, Vol. III. Kungl. Vitterhets Historie och Antikvitets Akadamien, Uppsala.

  • Geijer, Agnes. 1983. The Textile Finds from Birka. Pp. 80-99 in: N.B. Harte and K.G. Ponting. Cloth and Clothing in Medieval Europe. Heinemann, London.

  • Hagg, Inga. 1983. Viking women’s dress at Birka: A reconstruction by archaeological methods. Pp. 316-350 in: Harte, N.B. and K.G. Ponting. Cloth and Clothing in Medieval Europe. Pasold Research Fund.

  • Hughes, M.J 1990. X-Ray Fluorescence Analysis of Gold Threads and Braid from Old Minster at Winchester and from Winchester and Durham Cathedrals. Pp 79-81 in: Biddle, Martin. 1990. Object and Economy in Medieval Winchester. Oxford University Press.

  • Liles, John N. 1990. The art and craft of natural dyeing: Traditional recipes for modern use. University of Tennessee Press.

  • Lundgren, Mats. 1975. Tva typer av silverband fran en ryttargrav pa Gotland. Fornvannen 70:144-146.

  • Peacock, Elizabeth. 1993. SEM-EDS analysis of metal threads from Trondheim. NESAT 5.

  • Spies, Nancy. 2000. Ecclesiastical Pomp and Aristocratic Circumstance: A Thousand Years of Brocaded Tablet Woven Bands. Arelate Studio, Jarrettsville, MD.