Efenwealt Wystle's Laurel Scoll
An In-Progress (for a Long time) work.
By Lady Aenor d' Anjou
I chose to do an embroidered "tapestry" for my Lord Husband's Laurel scroll because that is how much I love him! I started work on this in the spring of 2000. Below is my progress as of June 2002. Please click on the images to view larger versions.
The Design:
The tapestry measures around 30" x 20" and is meant to
be used as a wall hanging.
The design is based largely upon the Bayeux Tapestry - a tapestry created in the
late 11th century which commemorates the conquest of England by William, Duke of Normandy.
The particular scene on which mine is based is of an inn where the English men were eating
and drinking in an upper storey, while one man at the door is motioning them to leave.
Since Efenwealt was Laureled for his Bardic arts, I thought it appropriate that he be
depicted performing in the hall. I turned one of the men into him, gave him a lute, and
made the other characters clapping, pointing, and listening in other ways.
The Text:
The style of text is also based on the Tapestry. The phrasing is blunt and choppy as the tapestry is narrated with pictures and just a bit of text. I wrote the wording to portray some of this feel. I also used mixed styles of lettering as seen in some areas of the original Bayeux Tapestry. Notice in the example below, the use of the squared off 'E' and the rounded 'E'. This particular usage shows up fairly often.
I placed the text in the arches of the building. In the original tapestry, the text sort of floats above and between the images, but I had much more text than could be done that way. I took the idea of elongating the arches of the building and placing the text inside them from a Canon table in a 10th C. French evangelistary.
The Materials:
I tried to stay as true to the original as I could make myself. There were only 9 colors used in most of the Tapestry, and I chose colors as close to those as I could. The terra-cotta color is used prevalently, as is a mustardy gold, black , cyan, olive green, and lighter yellow. The dark green and bright yellow of Efenwealt's arms are new, as well as a few more shades in the same family that I threw in because they were similar and so beautiful I couldn't resist! I added a few for fun in the same families.
I the textiles themselves are vegetable dyed wool floss on linen.
The Method:
The stitching is the same as in the Bayeux Tapestry, consisting of stem stitch and laid-work and couching. With this method most of the thread stays on top of the cloth so you do not waste the yarn. I outlined everything first and am now filling it in. Below are pictures of my initial sketch and front/back images of the heraldry detail.
'Mistakes' and Inconsistencies:
These are (for the most part) added in by me on purpose, to echo the inconsistencies of the original. In the original you find examples such as sails started in one color and finished in a totally different one, or an animal with 3 different colored legs for instance. These quirks are part of what I love so much about 11th and 12th C. art and the Bayeux Tapestry in particular. My piece has probably more inconsistencies in a small area than any single section of the original tapestry, but it gives the feeling of the original and was much more fun that way!
Return to Aénor's homepage
View my Bibliography