Mary, thirteen years before she came to the throne: "payed to Peycocke, of London, for xix yerds iii. qr̃t of clothe of golde at xxxviij.s̃ the yerde, xxxvijli. xs. vjd."[1] And for "a yerde and d^r qr̃t of clothe of siluer xls."[2]
Cloth of gold called
Tissue.
As between common silk and satin, there runs a broad difference, at least in look, one being dull, the other smooth and glossy, so there is a great distinction to be made among cloths of gold; some are, so to say, dead; others, brilliant and sparkling. When the gold is twisted into its silken filament, it takes the deadened look; when the flattened, filmy strip of metal is rolled about it so evenly as to bring its edges close to one another, it seems to be one unbroken wire of gold, sparkling and lustrous, like what is now known as "passing," and, during the middle ages, went by the term of Cyprus gold; and rich samits woven with it, were called damasks of Cyprus.
The very self-same things get for themselves other denominations as time goes on: such happened to cloths of gold. What the thirteenth century called, first, "ciclatoun," then "baudekin," afterward "nak," people, two hundred years later, chose to name "tissue," or the bright shimmering golden textile affected so much by our kings and queens in their dress, for the more solemn occasions of stately grandeur, as was just now mentioned. Up to this time, the very thin smooth paper made at first on purpose to be, when this rich stuff lay by, put between its folds to hinder it from fraying or tarnish, yet goes, though its original use is forgotten, by the name of tissue-paper.
The gorgeous and entire set of vestments presented to the altar at St. Alban's Abbey, by Margaret, Duchess of Clarence, A.D. 1429, and made of the cloth of gold commonly called "tyssewys," must have been as remarkable for the abundance and purity of the gold in its texture, as for the splendour of the precious stones set on it, as well as the exquisite beauty of its embroideries: "Obtulit etiam unum vestimentum integrum cum tribus capis choralibus de panno Tyssewys vulgariter nuncupato in quibus auri pretiosa nobilitas, gemmarum pulchritudo et curiosa manus artificis stuporem quendam inspectantium oculis repræsentant."[3] The large number of vestments made out of gold tissue, and of crimson, light blue, purple, green, and black, once belonging to York
