of Mercia, in the year 833, to the monastery
of Croyland was probably made use of in
some such manner. This monastery also
owed two precious vestments to the liberality
of King Harold.
The remarkable list of gifts by King
Athelstan, in 934, to the shrine of St. Cuth-
bert, at Chester-le-Street, includes, among
other offerings, two chasubles, an alb, a stole
and maniple (see p. 9), a girdle, three altar-
cloths, seven robes, and three curtains.*
It is most probable that the greater
number of the subjects for embroideries
were designed by the clergy or by monks,
as they were best acquainted with the sacred
history and the legends of the saints. Arch-
bishop Dunstan, for example himself a
skilled handicraftsman is known to have
designed for embroideries.
Among royal workers may be mentioned
Eadgyth, or Edith, the queen of Edward the
Confessor. William of Malmesbury states
that this lady herself embroidered the rich
robes worn by the king at festivals.
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