Grödinge tapestry ( sv, Grödingebonaden) is a type of handwoven

tapestry Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike most woven textiles, where both the warp and the weft threads may ...

that is on display at the

Swedish History Museum The Swedish History Museum ( sv, Historiska museet or Statens historiska museum) is a museum located in Stockholm, Sweden, that covers Swedish archaeology and cultural history from the Mesolithic period to present day. Founded in 1866, it operates ...

in Stockholm, Sweden. It originates from the Grödinge Church (''Grödinge kyrka'') in the

Diocese of Strängnäs The Diocese of Strängnäs ( sv, Strängnäs stift) is a part of the Lutheran Church of Sweden and has its seat in Strängnäs Cathedral in Strängnäs, south of Lake Mälaren. The diocese is made up of the two provinces Närke and Södermanlan ...

Botkyrka Municipality Botkyrka Municipality ( ) is a municipality in Stockholm County in east central Sweden, not far from the capital Stockholm. Its seat is located in the town of Tumba. In 1971 ''Grödinge'' was merged with Botkyrka and in 1974 ''Salem'' was adde ...

Södermanland County Södermanland County ( sv, Södermanlands län) is a county or '' län'' on the southeast coast of Sweden. In the local Sörmlandic dialects it is virtually universally shortened and pronounced as Sörmlands län, or simply Sörmland, which is ...

, Sweden. The tapestry was donated to the Swedish History Museum in 1910.''Svensk uppslagsbok'' Malmö, 1932.

History

The weave has been dated to the 15th century. The tapestry is made in a weaving technique called

double cloth Double cloth or double weave (also doublecloth, double-cloth, doubleweave) is a kind of woven textile in which two or more sets of warps and one or more sets of weft or filling yarns are interconnected to form a two-layered cloth.Kadolph, Sara J. ...

(''finnväv''), and it has a symmetrical square pattern in blue and white with lions,

griffins The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail, and back ...

and eagles or falcons, as well as dragons along the lower edge. All animals are depicted in profile and in the same direction. The dragons along the lower part of the tapestry are linked to each other with their long tails. The patterns on the Grödinge tapestry have been associated to patterns from Byzantium, with clear traces of Scandinavian influences. The Grödinge tapestry consists of two lengths, of which one has remaining edges which shows the weave width to be about . The original length for both the tapestries is unknown. The tapestry is made of wool. It stands out for great technical finesse and clear composition, representing the transition between the early medieval textiles made in double cloth and the later ones with strong renaissance elements. A simpler version from Sankt Mårten in the

National Museum of Finland The National Museum of Finland ( fi, Kansallismuseo, sv, Nationalmuseum) presents Finnish history from the Stone Age to the present day, through objects and cultural history. The Finnish National Romantic style building is located in central H ...

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...

. Other tapestries of the same kind have been found in Södra Råda and Överenhörna in Sweden, and at

Rauma, Finland Rauma (; sv, Raumo) is a town and municipality of around () inhabitants on the west coast of Finland, north of Turku, and south of Pori. Its neighbouring municipalities are Eura, Eurajoki, Laitila and Pyhäranta. Granted town privileges on ...

. In 1971, the Swedish postal service issued two stamps featuring motifs from the tapestry: a lion and a griffin.

References

External links

Grödinge Church website Scandinavian folklore
Scandinavian folklore">Grödinge Church website Scandinavian folklore
Tapestries Medieval Sweden">Tapestries">Scandinavian folklore">Grödinge Church website Scandinavian folklore
Tapestries Medieval Sweden] Medieval textile design Textile arts of Sweden {{Textile-arts-stub

History

See also

References

External links