Lace - Venice: A Travel Guide to Murano Glass, Carnival Masks, Gondolas, Lace, Paper and More - page 36

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Lace

In 1880, twenty-four of the thirty inpatients at the women-only San Clemente “lunatic

asylum” in Venice were listed on the topics as lacemakers. Whether a coincidence or a
measure of the long-lasting effects of such tedious work, one thing is certain: creating
traditional Venetian lace is one of the most painstaking endeavors in the history of art.
The origins of Venetian lace are lost to history. According to legend, a love-struck sailor
gave a Venetian girl an aquatic plant called trina delle sirene —mermaid's lace. The girl
was so taken with it that she immortalized its beautiful form with fine threads, and the art
of lacemaking was born. Over several centuries, Venetian lacemakers produced wonders of
breathtaking intricacy, extremely fine pieces stitched together with gossamer-fine threads.
For three hundred years their work boasted the most prestigious lace pedigree in Italy, if not
in the world.
The earliest Venetian laces were produced inside convents and were reserved for church
vestments, altar cloths, and other delicate church finery. Trade guilds also began to craft lace
in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, although in Venice—as in other important lace cities
in northern France and Flanders—the convents continued to be prolific centers of lace pro-
duction. Because lace was considered a proper task for a woman, especially one dedicated to
contemplative life, many cloistered women spent most of their daylight hours—indeed most
of their lives—with a needle and thread. Lacemaking also became the province of the vari-
ous scuole , or Venetian civic organizations, which, among other charitable activities, organ-
ized work for victims of circumstance, including spinsters, orphans, and others who could
not find a clear place within the strict social roles of Venetian society.
The heyday of Venetian needle lace ranged from about 1620 to 1710, the height of de-
mand among European nobility and royalty. Venetian lace became known as punto in aria
or “points in the air” because of its delicate effects. At that time, fashion called for lace col-
lars and cuffs, as well as handkerchiefs and other accessories for both men and women. A
type of lace collar that spread out in a fan behind a woman's head became popular in Venice