The German textile museum in Krefeld exhibits the collection embroidery from 1250 to 1650. The previous exhibition, in 2006, displayed the collection over the years 1650-1850. The present exhibition takes place because the second volume of embroidery, covering the period 1250-1650, is being published. The first volume, dealing with the years 1650-1850, appeared four years ago. The emphasis is on the various designs, techniques and materials used in embroidery in different eras. A separate part of the exhibition describes the characteristics, materials and techniques, along with the history, uses, prime periods and design principles of each type of embroidery. The typical uses and the social conditions concerning embroidery at courts, aristocracy, the citizens and in the church will be dealt with as well. Textiles and thus embroidered textiles too, played an very important part in furnishing rooms, such as wall hangings, cushions and bed-hangings. Embroidered clothes also represented the wealth and social rank of the owner and, also, his esteem and respect for a guest. Motifs were extremely varied, from floral ornamentation, through animals, biblical scenes, mythology, heraldry and epics of chivalry. The display of this vulnerable material, often centuries old, is a unique opportunity to look through the eyes of a medieval spectator.
