This study documents three chapel furnishings dating from around 1500 belonging to the Edgcumbe family at Cotehele, Cornwall, south-west England, and discusses their survival during the Protestant Reformation and beyond. The textiles were exhibited to the Society of Antiquaries of London by W H St John Hope, FSA and the text of his presentation was published in the Proceedings of the Society in 1912–13. The present article brings together the numerous other historic writings concerning the textiles. Their possible origins are explored and assessed in context with pieces of similar date. Observations of their original making and later changes are recorded, while interpretations by historians of this period are put forward for consideration. The rarity of survival of the textiles and their documented history is acknowledged.

Gilding threads collected from Spanish and Portuguese palaces and from the embroideries and adornments of sculptures of the Virgin and Christ that form part of Sevillian Holy Week were analyzed and compared (20 artifacts were evaluated). The study covered a broad time period with examples from the 13th to 14th centuries, 18th to 20th centuries, and also including modern embroideries. A combination of scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy was used. The knowledge of the layered structures of the threads has provided very valuable information regarding the manufacturing techniques. The different metal threads found in the embroidery studied consisted of gold, silver, copper, and alloys of these metals and aluminium. The fabrication procedures often differed in the different workshops and changed with time. In the modern embroideries, a decrease of precious metal concentration was detected. The threads were wound around a core of silk threads.