Van Der Weyden Gown

"The Presentation in the Temple", Rogier Van der Weyden, 1455.

Magdalena (right wing of Braque family triptych), Rogier Van der Weyden, 1450.

A couple months ago, I started a replica of the gown in Rogier Van der Weyden’s painting “The Presentation in the Temple”.

As this painting shows mostly the back and side of the gown, I’ve also used his painting of Magdalena to create the front of the gown, because the seams at the shoulders match those of the “Presentation” and it seems logical that these gowns are most likely the same pattern.

The paintings do not adequately depict the lower portion of the gown, i.e. how many gores there are and where the seams lie, therefore, I am working on the presumption that it would be constructed similarly to a basic kirtle.  (I’ll blog about kirtles later, promise!)

To start the gown, I cut four rectangles to reach from just below the shoulders to the floor and basted the front and back seams in a straight line.  Then I added strap-like pieces at the shoulders (the cap-sleeves will later be attached to these).  The strap-pieces measured 4″X18″ to start, but they’ll be trimmed after everything fits properly.

Once the height was adjusted, I marked the side-seams for fit and sewed them in place.  Then I checked the back seam again, made some adjustments, stitched it, removed the basting and tried it on again.  Because this is a pattern draft/drape hybrid, many fittings are required.

Next, I cut two trapezoids for the shoulders.  They started as rectangles, but I trimmed them to fit properly and now they measure 14″ at the shoulder (top edge in picture), 19.5″ at the sleeve (bottom edge), 10″ at the front seam and 9.25″ at the back seam.  These were a little tricky to make fit properly; they didn’t want to lay flat where the bodice, shoulder & sleeve all meet, but I hand basted them in place, rather than using pins, and then they behaved nicely.

At this point, I need to add the skirt gores, add the extra pieces of cloth at the decolletage (I should have done this before I sewed the shoulders on, oops!), and add the triangular piece of fabric at the back.  Then I’ll flat fell the seams, hem the bottom, finish the sleeve and neck edges, and add lacing in the front.

Stay tuned…I’ll be adding more details and pictures as I get more done.

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