Elena Aldobrandini Museum of textiles and clothing.
Napoli, Italy

The first group of the collection consists of sacred furnishings, previously used in the adjacent church of Santa Maria delle Grazie a Mondragone. They are important as they fill gaps in our knowledge and help describe the history of textiles and embroidery. The four embroidered frontals dating from the late XVII and early XVIII centuries are particularly remarkable. Two of them combine gold embroidery with decorative elements in coral. Some of the sacred furnishings are in damask, and articles of this kind were for centuries one of the most highly-appreciated products of southern Italy, although even today we cannot be absolutely certain which types were made locally.