CHRISTENING LACE

As we mentioned in our entry on church lace, lace saw widespread use in Christian churches and rituals. One of the most important rituals of the Christian religion is the christening of newborn children, otherwise known as baptism. Christening is a child’s first step into religion, and was thus viewed as a very important step that had to be celebrated accordingly.

Lace made its entry into the ceremony from the 16th century onwards. In those days, childbirth and childcare were shrouded in ignorance and superstition, and it was thought to be very important that the child be christened as soon as possible. If the child were to die before it was baptised, the devil would claim the child and its soul would be lost forever. Therefore, children were baptised as soon as possible, on the day of birth or one or two days later. This meant the mother of the child could not be present at the christening of her newborn.

In the 16th and 17th century, the godmother of the child would carry the child into the church in a bearing cloth. The richer the parents, the more ornate this bearing cloth would be, because the baptism was as much a celebration of the christening as a social occasion where one could make an impression and show their status.

Bearing cloths were often huge in size, measuring up to 5 feet in length and were made of opulent fabrics, usually one of the following : silk, satin, damask or velvet. The edges consisted mainly of trimmings in gold or silver lace, silk or embroidery. Due to the size, stiffness and weight of the fabric, these bearing cloths couldn’t be carried by one person. Sometimes, up to four ladies were necessary to carry the infant into the church.

Once inside the church, the bearing cloth would be removed, along with the swaddles and undergarments so that the child could be briefly but fully immersed in the baptism font. Swaddles gave little opportunity for embellishment, and proud mothers concentrated on the other garments, such as bibs and caps, for further embellishment of their loved little one. The bonnet in the picture is a fine example of this. It is an ornate 17th century cap.

In the course of the 18th century, the traditions and superstitions surrounding childcare in general and baptism in particular changed. Swaddling became less and less frequent and was abandoned almost completely by the end of the 18th century. Also, baptism no longer required full immersion into the Holy water. Instead, the child was sprinkled with Holy water from the font by the priest. This heralded the introduction of the christening robe. Also, the bearing cloth was replaced by a mantle, much smaller in size and more useful for wrapping an infant to protect it from the cold.

Affluent members of society still preferred these mantles to be richly decorated, and fabrics such as silk or velvet, trimmed with silk, fur or braid, quilted against the cold, and embroidered with flowers or other motifs were popular.

The white christening robe the child wears for his baptism represents the new life, free from sin, into which he is reborn through the christening ritual. The white colour was chosen as the symbol of purity
before God. When the robes first came into fashion, they were invariably high-waisted and of moderate length, richly decorated with lace or embroidery. The sleeves were usually made of lace and were straight with large cuffs. As fashion changed, so did the christening robes, and from the 1840s onwards, V-shaped collars became all the rage, along with longer dresses to allow even more beautiful lace decorations.

In the pictures above, you can see two christening robes dating from the 19th century. The first robe is decorated with beautiful Valenciennes bobbin lace trimmings, The fabric of the robe itself is batiste, a very fine linen that is very light and elegant. The other one is a christening robe that aso dates back to the 19th century. Its is richly decorated with Ayrshire whitework, which was very popular at the time and remains popular even in our times. The peony symbolizes wealth, honor, love and, when it flowers as above, great fortune for the baby.

Just like lace wedding veils, christening robes tend to stay in the family and are handed from mother to daughter, so that every newborn member of the family can look their best when christened. The Valenciennes christening robe you can see in the pictures has been in our family for four generations. It has become family tradition to dress up every newborn in this robe for christening. It is a sentimental moment for the grandmother to see her grandchild dressed in the same christening grown as her own child. This special dress helps to make the christening
ceremony a memorable event filled with emotion and joy.


Valuable, cultural traditions can be carried on through lace.

Click on pictures to enlarge.

Some pictures courtesy of Sally Kevill-Davies' "Yesterday's Children."