From 16 December until the end of February 2025 (not on Sundays and public holidays), the Lace Centre Bruges will host a unique exhibition on the lace trade between the Vatican and Flanders around 1700, in collaboration with the State Archives in Rome.
These are a dozen handwritten quires from the archives of the Apostolic Chamber of the Papal State that document the purchase of lace, among other things, for linens intended for church ceremonies (e.g. corporals or also towels for the washing of feet on Maundy Thursday) or intended for the private use of the popes (handkerchiefs, pillowcases and the like). One or more original lace samples are usually attached to these documents by means of a seal in red wax.
These previously unseen documents provide a fascinating insight into the life and taste of the Vatican in the first half of the eighteenth century. They also illustrate the importance and impact at that time of the international lace trade from Flanders to the noble and ecclesiastical courts in Europe.
Not on Sundays and public holidays