Covering a period that witnessed the flowering of the Renaissance and the major expansion of the Italian silk industry, this volume examines the Italian silk fabrics depicted in paintings from Italy, England and the Netherlands over the course of 25…

Silk velvet was first woven in Europe during the second half of the thirteenth century, but it reached a peak of perfection during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The V&A holds one of the finest collections of Renaissance velvets, including a…