​Crown, Church and Couture

In this piece I describe briefly a fascinating lecture for the C&TA Pamela Clabburn Memorial
Lecture 2024, given by Amy Hare, Senior Lecturer in Contextual Studies at the Royal School
of Needlework (RSN) and an Associate Lecturer in Costume History at UAL Wimbledon.
​

The Pamela Clabburn Lecture was given to a lovely full room on the afternoon of Saturday 28 September. We were in the Jerningham Room, upstairs at the Costessey Centre, where it
is easier to see the screen clearly, rather than the larger but light-filled space downstairs.
Our guests of honour were Ken and Lisa Clabburn, who are generous sponsors of the C&TA.  The annual lecture was given in memory their renowned relative and C&TA founder, Pamela
Clabburn.


The RSN describes itself as:
‘The International Centre of Excellence for the Art of Hand Embroidery since 1872.
Based at the magnificent Hampton Court Palace, south-west London,
we offer a thriving education programme for everyone from beginner to degree level […] Our
renowned Embroidery Studio creates stunning bespoke embroidery for fashion, art and
royalty, as well as expertly restoring and conserving valuable and historical embroidered
pieces.’
Amy’s talk introduced us to the RSN, its history, founding ethos, and current incarnation.
She was unapologetic about the role of patronage in the founding and development of the
RSN, hence my title: Crown, Church and Couture. Amy shared some of the exciting work that
the degree students are involved with, and the role of the school as an educational
institution was explained.
Amy also showed us highlights of the RSN’s own collection, which was for me the most
interesting part of the talk. One theme was samplers (spot samplers, alphabet samplers,
technique samplers, sample garments etc.) and their role in women’s education. I had not
seen map samplers and so, when I got home, I looked at images of globe samplers from the
USA. Another image which interested me particularly was the Queen’s Robe of Estate
worked by the RSN Embroidery Studio for the recent coronation of King Charles III and
Queen Camilla (6 May 2023). https://royal-needlework.org.uk/her-majestys-robe-of-estate/
The highly-skilled master-embroiderers worked on nine textile pieces for the coronation -
including the Anointing Screen, with its tree bearing 56 leaves representing all the countries
of the Commonwealth. It also includes a phrase well-known locally: ‘All shall be well and
all manner of things shall be well’. These are the words of the 14th century Norwich mystic
and author, Julian of Norwich, also known as Mother Julian.
The RSN collection is currently being digitised and is very accessible, even if access to the
physical objects is limited to temporary exhibitions, teaching and research. Another
interesting digital project is the ‘RSN Stitch Bank’ which is a useful resource for both makers
and researchers. 

There was an interesting discussion of the role of embroidery as an aid to recovery for
soldiers, and the hidden history of men as embroiderers. I enjoyed Amy Hare’s curatorial
approach and the wealth of examples she used to illustrate her points.
After the lecture, a lovely tea was served, which included fresh strawberries and mini
Battenburg cakes, as well as other delights, and an opportunity chat with other members
and with the speaker. Everyone I spoke to had been inspired by Amy’s talk.
We were also able to admire - at a safe distance - a superb Norwich shawl made by
Clabburn, Sons & Crisp. I was there when it was folded up at the end of the day, and saw the
underside with its floating wefts and beautiful colours which were another inspiration.
For further information about the RSN, their website is well worth exploring
https://royal-needlework.org.uk/
Helen Durrant
CTA Member

---