Szilágyi András (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 27. (Budapest, 2009)

Enikő SIPOS: Hungarian-Related Textile Works in Switzerland

ENIKŐ SIPOS HUNGARIAN-RELATED TEXTILE WORKS IN SWITZERLAND The History Museum in Bern (Bernisches Historisches Museum) and the Textile Museum (Textilmuseum) in Sankt Gallen hold some important Hungarian-related textile works. These works are connected to the activity of Agnes of Habsburg, the widow of King Andrew III of Hungary, who, following the death of her husband, lived on the family estate in Switzerland between 1301 and 1364. Daughter of Duke Albert I of Austria, Agnes of Habsburg was born in 1280 and married Andrew III in 1296. After the death of the King she withdrew to the convent at Königsfelden in the canton of Aargau, where she died in 1364. She took over the leadership of the Königsfelden convent after the death of the founder, Queen Elizabeth, in 1313.

1 She generously patronised the convent with a view to making it an artistic centre. She donated to the Königsfelden convent many items from her rich treasury which she 1. Three Hungarian banners from Königsfelden (Bern, Historisches Museum) had brought along with her from Hungary. After the occupation of Aargau, Königsfelden belonged to Bern. In 1528 the nuns left the convent whose rich treasury met a sad fate: its precious-metal objects were melted down and only a handful of treasures survived.

2 The highly valuable textile works, three banners, from the Clarissine convent at Königsfelden can be regarded as the earliest Hungarian examples of their kind (fig. l).

3 These works have received mention in the literature since 1891. This essay has borrowed (in adapted form) the title of Emil Delmár s authoritative study in this field.

4 These items appeared in the scholarly catalogue of the 2001 exhibition "1000 years of Bavaria and Hungary," held first in Passau and subsequently in Budapest, and it was the first time they were on display in Hungary.

5 The banners were most recently studied by Dorottya B. Nyékhelyi apropos of her publication of the findings of a well excavation of 4 October 1999.

6 The cloth is delicate, worn taffeta silk. All of them are made from several pieces. They have an elongated oblong form, with the double cross in the centre. They have been slit lengthwise at the bottom, producing several tassels. All five lanons have survived on the first one, three on the second one and just one on the third. Knots were tied around the edges from green, white and red silk, most of which are missing today. János Kalmár, in agreement with Emil Delmár, establishes with respect to the 135