50. First Panel Of The Quaker Tapestry
Posted on 30 March 2021
The Quaker Tapestry consists of 77 panels illustrating the history of Quakerism over three and a half centuries.
The idea for the tapestry came from Friend Anne Wynn-Wilson who was inspired by the design of the Bayeux Tapestry.
In addition to using four historic and well-known stitches (split stitch, stem stitch, chain stitch and Peking knot), Wynn-Wilson invented a new corded stitch, known as the Quaker Stitch, to allow for tight curves on the lettering.
Each panel measures 25 inches (64cm) wide by 21 inches (53cm) tall.
4,000 men, women and children from 15 countries worked on the panels between 1981 and 1989.
Panels have been toured in traveling exhibitions including a North American tour in 1993/1994. A 2012 exhibition of 39 panels in Ely Cathedral, Cambridgeshire, attracted 11,273 visitors during the 27 days it was on show.
The first panel of the Quaker Tapestry shows a prism with the colours of the rainbow circling around in spirals.
The panel includes the following quote:
“For the Society of Friends might be thought of as a prism through which the Divine Light passes, to become visible in a spectrum of many colours; many more, in their richest, than words alone can express.”
First panel of the Quaker Tapestry
The tapestry now has a permanent home at the Meeting House in Kendal, Cumbria, England.
Image from makersmercantile.com/