Stonyhurst College’s Royal Treasure on Show
at the V&A
In the Easter 2002 Fr Anthony Symondson described the magnificent Tudor cope which belongs to Stonyhurst College and is now on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum.
This unique Gothic masterpiece was saved from destruction in the early 17th century and ended up at Stonyhurst. It is one of the main items featured in a new exhibition at the V&A, called ‘Gothic Art of England 1400-1547’. The exhibition runs until 18th January
The golden cope was one of 29 made for Henry VII for use in Westminster Abbey, and bequeathed to his son Henry VIII on his death in 1509. Henry VIII took them to his historic meeting with Francis I, the King of France, at the Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1520.
Made from golden thread, the heavy garment is a prime example of English Gothic workmanship. “It is a magnificent piece of work, and to see 29 of them together must have been a wonderful sight,’ said Jan Graffius, Stonyhurst College curator. However, the Stonyhurst cope is the only one to have survived.
Five were lost during the dissolution of the monasteries and by 1688 only 11 sets were left in England and these were burned by Cromwell in 1643. One, along with a chasuble and chalice veil, had been rescued and spirited away to the Jesuit college in St Omer, France, the forerunner of Stonyhurst.
They were commented on in 1609 by the Papal Nuncio who visited St Omers saying that they were ‘a rich and rare survival’.
They were in regular use on grand feasts at the college from 1609 until about a decade ago. Indeed they were last used when the Queen visited Stonyhurst in the early nineties.
The set has been on loan to the V&A for the past three years and now they are featured in the exhibition. ‘It is a major re-evaluation of the flowering of English Gothic art, embroidery, illumination, metalwork and art and we are proud that our cope is featuring in the exhibition.” said Jan
This unique Gothic masterpiece was saved from destruction in the early 17th century and ended up at Stonyhurst. It is one of the main items featured in a new exhibition at the V&A, called ‘Gothic Art of England 1400-1547’. The exhibition runs until 18th January
The golden cope was one of 29 made for Henry VII for use in Westminster Abbey, and bequeathed to his son Henry VIII on his death in 1509. Henry VIII took them to his historic meeting with Francis I, the King of France, at the Field of the Cloth of Gold in 1520.
Made from golden thread, the heavy garment is a prime example of English Gothic workmanship. “It is a magnificent piece of work, and to see 29 of them together must have been a wonderful sight,’ said Jan Graffius, Stonyhurst College curator. However, the Stonyhurst cope is the only one to have survived.
Five were lost during the dissolution of the monasteries and by 1688 only 11 sets were left in England and these were burned by Cromwell in 1643. One, along with a chasuble and chalice veil, had been rescued and spirited away to the Jesuit college in St Omer, France, the forerunner of Stonyhurst.
They were commented on in 1609 by the Papal Nuncio who visited St Omers saying that they were ‘a rich and rare survival’.
They were in regular use on grand feasts at the college from 1609 until about a decade ago. Indeed they were last used when the Queen visited Stonyhurst in the early nineties.
The set has been on loan to the V&A for the past three years and now they are featured in the exhibition. ‘It is a major re-evaluation of the flowering of English Gothic art, embroidery, illumination, metalwork and art and we are proud that our cope is featuring in the exhibition.” said Jan