Hungarian embroidery is the same age as other European embroidery traditions. The oldest embroidery which is can be seen in Hungary, is the robe of the first King of Hungary, Stephen I. You can see it in the Hungarian National Museum. The wife of the king helped embroider the rich golden silk robe.
Foreign nuns and ladies brought the current embroidery stitches of the Western cultures to Hungary. In the Middle Ages the main influences were the Byzantine and Gothic styles, and at the end of the 15 century Turkish and Italian renaissance. This meeting of the western and eastern influences, and styles was the birth of unique Hungarian embroidery.
From the renaissance comes the symmetric, from the Turkish designs come the asymmetrical compositions, crossing lines, the simplistic floral drawings, and the very stylized cypress and flower bushes.
Almost no villages in Hungary, where is no embroidery. Hungary's needlecraft heritage is more prevalent in household textiles, than in clothes and apparel. The main colors, red, blue and black.
The family's financial strength was demonstrated in how many embroidered household textiles it had. Young girls learned to embroider very early ages, and didn't marry until, then their trousseau - their future textiles- is not was ready. It is was a biog honor to be mentioned as a good embroiderer. |
