Folia historica 18

III. Műhely - elméleti, módszertani, gyakorlati kérdések - Sipos Enikő: A Szt. László palást metamorphozisa

László, was obtained on loan by the obliging consideration of the Zagreb Cathedral, to be exhibited as a treasured historical relic. The one-time black silk of the casuble has faded to dark blue by now. Round its border as well as on the centre-line of its front and back runs a decoration of gold fabric stripes. On its back, below the cross, embroidered royal pair is appliquéd. On the shoulder part an abbreviation of the Latin inscription „Ladislai Regis" may be seenembroidered on a piece of red silk. Another embroidered inscription on the other side reads Pallium (or De Pallio), a later indication of the fact, that the piece was held as a relic. Its present form is the result of a remodelling. The embroidered figures may have been cut out from another object to form an appliqué on the back part. The garment could have been donated by King László himself at the time of his founding the bishopric of Zagreb, in 1094. It had been customary for kings to donate their precious robes to churches. However, according to tradition, it was Károly (Charles) Robert I. of the Anjou dynasty, who presented it to Bishop Gazotti sometime before 1322. Namely, on behalf of the papal Curia, Gazotti had assisted Charles Robert to ascend the throne and, a mention of the royal gift appears in the bishop's biography. The first entry of the chasuble in the inventory of the Cathedral was made in 1394: „Et primo casula nigri coloris de pallio Sancti Ladislai Regis facta." In a later inventory the piece can still be found, then for a length of time we do not find any trace of it. Research started on account of the 1394 entry and the chasuble was found again in 1872 in the Cathedral's Saint Ladislas Altar, housed by a small glass cabinet. The originally black silk fabric had been the product of an 11th-century Byzantine weaver's workshop. The fabric pattern shows vegetal ornamentation in hexagonal fields. The centres of the hexagonal fields, in alternating lines, are filled in with vine-leaf respectively with heart-shaped foliole motifs. The hexagonal pattern is known as „pallia scutata". The gold fabric trims were made of a two-weft lanciered silk fabric dateable to the end of the 11th century. Both the dark ground fabric and the decorating gold stripes pertain to the original 11th-century mantle. The embroidered figures, representing a king and a queen, are not appurtenances of the original mantle, but of the chasuble fashioned from it. Tradition has it, that the figure on the right is Saint Ladislas, while the female figure represents his sister Ilona. Nevertheless, we still ought not presume that the figures were likenesses of the donators, because the mantle was not the gift of King Ladislas. The embroidered figures are fragmentary; cut along their contour lines, a piece is missing from the lower part of the female figure. The appearance of the figures shows very heterogenous traits. The closed crown on the head of the king is customary for the 11th and 12th centuries, but the queen's crown refers to a considerably later date. Elements of the wear: the fastening of the robes, the out-turned trimmings of fur on the shoulder capes are indicative of the late 13 th or early 14th centuries. From the letter-type of the Ladislai Regis inscription just as from the execution of the embroideries the inference can be drawn that they may be even-aged and not more ancient than the 13th century. The embroidery of the figures was made on a linen cloth grounding with the sotermed Anlege technique. Although the professional literature makes no reference ot it. I must note here, that the skincolour embroidery on the face and hands of the male figure may be the result of a onetime repair work. That is to say, originally, in the same way as may be seen on the female figure, the face and hands were embroidered with a silver thread and this counts as something unique in the history of embroidery. This inference is sustained by the fact, that on the lower part of the kings extended hand a 264