Opus Anglicanum
V&A, London, until February 5
Opus Anglicanum is a showcase of the Victoria & Albert Museum’s large collection of English medieval embroidery work, along with examples loaned from elsewhere, with some returning to Britain for the first time in more than half a millennium.
The exquisitely detailed and colourful embroidery was first called opus anglicanum (English work) as far back as the 13th century. Made of silk, with the use of gold and silver thread, these were splendid and expensive pieces at the time they were created. They were worn by kings, queens, cardinals and popes throughout Europe.
