Tea at Trianon: A Selection of Mitres

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Thursday, July 31, 2025

A Selection of Mitres

From Liturgical Arts Journal:

As mentioned, the use of precious stones to add ornamental colour and texture (as well as a sense of preciousness) was common in this period (and really was so up until the most recent centuries), as for example in the case of this Neapolitan mitre made circa 1300-1325. In this instance we can see how even the edge of the mitre has decorative ornamentation applied to it. This was a design feature that was more commonplace in later medieval mitres. Once again you'll see the same inverted 'T' design as well as the circular medallions and the entire face of this mitre has been covered with small white pearls. While images of saints on mitres if very common in the medieval period, this is a good example showcasing the fact that not all mitres felt compelled to include them. Something similar can be seen in this mitre from the Cathedral of San Lorenzo at Scala/Ravello which is dated to the thirteenth or fourteenth century. One can here too see the Italo-Byzantine influence which here comes in the form of small gold enamels depicting various apostles and saints. (These enamels may well have come from the workshops of Constantinople). (Read more.)