Szilágyi András (szerk.): Ars Decorativa 22. (Budapest, 2003)
Márta JÁRÓ: On the History of a 17th Century Noblemans' Dolman and Mantle, based on the Manufacturing Techniques of the Ornamental Metal Threads. Or de Milan, Or de Lyon and Silver of Clay Ornamentations on a ceremonial Costume from the Esterházy Treasury
World War. 13 The change of colour can be attributed to the action of moisture and other chemicals to which they were exposed at that time. As to the earlier history of the garments, we have no more than suppositions. Does the 1725 description really hint at the coronation vestment of Leopold, as the tradition thinks, or only at a mantle and dolman from that time? The dolman would fit a person of large stature, and is relatively long. Could this have been worn by Prince Leopold under the velvet topcoat referred to in the contemporary description, at his coronation as King of Hungary in 1655? He was then practically a child, and reportedly of short stature. 14 Can the dolman referred to in the "Ältere Zeremonialakten" be the same as the one preserved in the Museum of Applied Arts? If yes, when and how was it added to the Esterházy treasury, together with the mantle which appears to have been made to match? Can these items of clothing, on the basis of their tailoring, be classified together with other mid 17 th-century clothes styled "in the Hungarian fashion"? Or may these rather be the mysterious items "used by His Serene Highness in his youth", mentioned under the same inventory-number in an earlier Fraknó inventory, that of 1693? 15 In the latter case however, "His Serene Highness" ("Sua Serenitas") would in all probability be, not the then-ruling Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Hungary; but rather the Palatine and Imperial Prince Paul Esterházy, who commanded the inventory to be made. 16 When, and why, were the metal-threaded laces sewn-in to the side seams of the dolman? When was the strange repair-patch applied to the dolman, and hidden by silver coloured metal threads? These are but a few of the many questions which can perhaps be answered by art historians and textile restorers after studying the contemporary sources, analysing the weaving techniques of the various fabrics, identifying the materials used for linings and patchings, and classifying the style of the tailoring. We here approach the problem from a different point of view, relying on information gained from the scientific analysis of the metal threads which were used. For the ornamentation and repair of the dolman and the mantle various types of gold- and silver-colour metal threads were employed, which differ from one another in their manufacturing technique; that is, in their morphology and/or material. The manufacturing techniques in most cases reflect differences in temporal and geographical circumstances; and so the findings will we hope bring us closer to a true picture of the history of the garments. The topic of the scientific analysis of metal threads used for the ornamentation of secular and church vestments was dealt with very systematically, as early as the 1880s, in the pioneering book written by F. Bock. In this work he described morphological examination using the optical microscope, and catalogued the materials employed for such threads. 17 Subsequently, as a result of research work performed some hundred years later, the number of types of metal threads which can be distinguished on the basis of their manufacturing technique (differing in their morphology and/ or material) has increased from the 15-20 described by him to now over 60. It may be mentioned as a point of interest that in the course of the analysis of these garments we have in fact identified one more, previously undescribed, type of metal thread. Thanks to the possibilities afforded by today's high-technology instruments, the analysis of the manufacturing techniques of a metal thread can be performed on a very small sample of the thread (about 2-5 mm). Thus, in contrast to previous methods, practically no damage is caused to the item from which it comes. However, this is partly offset by the fact that reliable conclusions can be drawn only if a number of samples, from several different locations, are tested. What makes the situation more complex is the fact that in the fabric, embroidery, and other ornamentation there is usually (as is the case with the mantle and dolman) more than one type of metal thread; and furthermore, each type of thread may itself be composed of 3 or 4 different components, which must all be
