Margaret Layton's jacket is a surviving example of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

Jacobean embroidery Jacobean embroidery refers to embroidery styles that flourished in the reign of King James I of England in first quarter of the 17th century. The term is usually used today to describe a form of crewel embroidery used for furnishing characteri ...

, significant because it appears in a portrait which has also survived. The jacket was originally owned and worn by Margaret Layton (1579–1641), wife of Francis Layton (1577–1661) who was one of the Yeomen of the Jewel House during the reigns of

James I James I may refer to: People *James I of Aragon (1208–1276) *James I of Sicily or James II of Aragon (1267–1327) *James I, Count of La Marche (1319–1362), Count of Ponthieu *James I, Count of Urgell (1321–1347) *James I of Cyprus (1334–13 ...

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

and, briefly, Charles II.

Embroidered Embroidery is the craft of decorating fabric or other materials using a needle to apply thread or yarn. Embroidery may also incorporate other materials such as pearls, beads, quills, and sequins. In modern days, embroidery is usually seen on c ...

linen jackets were worn as informal dress, and were particularly popular among wealthy women in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. This jacket is exquisitely decorated with flowers, birds and butterflies, embroidered in coloured

silk Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The protein fiber of silk is composed mainly of fibroin and is produced by certain insect larvae to form cocoons. The best-known silk is obtained from the ...

s, coiled tendrils of silver-gilt plaited braid stitch and silver-gilt sequins. The edges of the jacket are trimmed with silver and silver-gilt bobbin lace and silver-gilt spangles. This jacket appears in a portrait of Margaret Layton which probably dates from around 1620 and is painted in oils on oak boards. The painter is not known, but the style of portraiture is similar to that of

Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger Marcus Gheeraerts (also written as Gerards or Geerards; 1561/62 – 19 January 1636) was a Flemish artist working at the Tudor court, described as "the most important artist of quality to work in England in large-scale between Eworth and van ...

(1561?–1635) who was the most fashionable portrait painter of the period. Both the jacket and the portrait are in the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

, who formally acquired them in 1994. At the time, they were catalogued as worn by, and depicting Margaret Laton as per records done in 1933 by a former curator. However, more recent research confirmed that the name was always spelled Layton in contemporary documents, monuments for the family in

Rawdon, West Yorkshire Rawdon is a village and civil parish in the metropolitan borough of the City of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It sits on the River Aire and on the A65 south of Yeadon. The northern parts of the village are part of the Guiseley and Rawdon ...

, and the '' Dictionary of National Biography'', leading to the Museum making widespread and ongoing corrections.

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* * * {{embroidery 17th-century fashion Collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum English embroidery Individual jackets Paintings in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum

See also

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