Thorsberg tunic

[Tim Edwards]

Does anyone have any detail on how the various pieces of the Thorsberg tunic are sewn together?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Thorsberg_Tunic.jpg

I think this was possibly published by K Schlabow, but I don'y have the book. I do have three of Graham Sumner's books, which are excellent, but do not detail exactly what stitching methods are used where.

Neck: Is this cut down, or does it dip because of a rolled hem?

Sides: As far as I can tell, the sides are left open, blanket stitched and secured by a series of small 'ties'.

Sleeves: It looks like the seams are blanket stitched, butted together and then sewn through. Some people have commented that the sleeves were separate, ie detachable, and the material was of a different weave. I'm not thoroughly convinced by this latter assertion, judging from the grainy images I have.

Tablet weave: The 'cuffs' appear to have tablet woven borders, but I can't ascertain whether this is true for the main body of the tunic.

I'd appreciate any help.

[Ingvar Sigurdson]

Hi Tim,

From her book 'Cloth and Clothing in Early Anglo-Saxon England ' Penelope Walton Rogers remarks

'The Thorsberg tunic has been made with a great economy from a narrow piece of 2/2 diamond twill a little over half a metre wide, with tablet woven selvedges."

'The body is is made of two rectangles and the selvedges, which form the tunic side, are laced (not stiched) down to the hip and then left open. The sleeves are cut as rectangles across the fabric, so the selvedges appear as cuffs and shoulders. The top edges of the tunichave been laced together on the shoulders, and the neck line is boat-shaped and 260mm wide. The tunic is 0.86-0.90m long, which suggests that it was not yet length. The sleeves have been tapered below the elbow to 180,, wide at the wrist, where the seam has been left open.'

I was under the impression myself from 'live' images and engravings of the tunic that I have seen, that it was the sleeves that where made from a diamond twill, and the body of the tunic appears to be a tabby twill.

It has been observed that the method & construction of the tunic, which does make it uncomfortable for the wearer, may have been due to it having been made for a votive figure, think along the lines of a scarecrow stick figure, rather then to have been actually worn, which perhaps could hold some weight considering the context it was found in.

regards
Ingvar

[Tim Edwards]

Ingvar,

Thanks for the reply, useful detail. My 'tailoress' has completed a reconstruction using herringbone wool and the original stitching techniques.
I think we'll also be attempting a purely hand woven/stitched/dyed version in the near future, which I'll showcase on the reconstruction forum.

On the lack of comfort issue, the body has only to be broadened for the seams to drop off the shoulders and become comfortable again. The proportions of tunic width to sleeve length can stay relative. I'm still left wondering whether the original was designed to be skin tight rather than loose fitting like most modern reconstruction. The laced sides enable you to wear a skin tight garment which might otherwise be damn difficult to wriggle into.

I'm still struck by the resemblance to sleeves shown on the Rhineland stelae, which Graham Sumner demonstrates quite neatly in his books.

Thanks for the help.

[Ingvar Sigurdson]

Hi Tim,

Glad to have helped. Your a man after my own heart in attempting a hand woven/stiched/dyed project..I have a project of my own in recreating the 6th C tunic from Hogum. Good luck with your own project and look forward to seeing the results.

regards
Ingvar