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February 27th 2011
Published: March 30th 2011
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If you visit Vienna be sure to tour the Treasury Chamber or the Schatzkammer. It really is much more than a chamber. The word chamber gives the idea of one room, but there are numerous rooms on the tour and surely you will find many of interest. While we enjoyed seeing the silver and the gold and the jewels we came away most impressed by the tapestry work in the final room.



Tapestry

Tapestries we have seen in other museum always have been hung on walls. This give a good view of the entire tapestry, but not of the needlework. In this museum tapestries are both on walls and in cases so that you can get really views close-up. The ones that we could get close to gave us views of the needlework that really 'knocked our eyes out'. I always thought that tapestries were done with one basic stitch ... say something like counted cross stitch. Now I know that many people love to create pictures and design with counted cross stitch but I have tried it and found counted cross stitch deadly boring. However it is a totally different experience, at least

for me, when it comes to needlepoint. In needlepoint hundreds of stitches can be used to create effects of flowing water, of hair, of clothing, of sky. The only limitation for the person working on a needlepoint is their knowledge of stitches and their own imagination of how to use them. We discovered it is the same with tapestry. The stitches are tiny and extremely varied. I now stand in awe of those who worked on and created the huge tapestries that we have seen in museums since close-up the work is much more complex than I ever imagined. I actually never even realized tapestries were made by hand. I had always wondered how anyone wove those complicated pictures. What a pity most tapestries are high on walls where it is impossible to see the fantastic skill of the creator/artists who made them.
Enjoy the photos.


Additional photos below
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Tapestry windowsTapestry windows
Tapestry windows

They almost look 3D
Yes, you saw correctly, over 1300 EurosYes, you saw correctly, over 1300 Euros
Yes, you saw correctly, over 1300 Euros

It is probably needlepoint. I wanted to show that needlework is still alive and well in Europe.


30th March 2011

Tapestries
Reminds me of the ones we saw at the Vatican Museum only prettier.
31st March 2011

great photos!
Thanks once again for such great photos. It was really cool to see these works of art up close and personal. Makes me feel like I was there with you.

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