Clergy Priest Alb Linen Vestment Robe UNUSED Vtg Lace

If angels could sew...

they would surely have made or guided the hands of the seamstress

who made this vestment!

On Sunday night our auction for this regal clergy alb vestment will end.  This robe is constructed from fine, strong, light, almost white, cream-colored linen.  It is gathered in front and back from a shoulder yolk, and it has long sleeves that end with a stunning embellishment of grape leaves that is highlighted with a black lining.  This hand-worked embellishment of leaves and vines measures 7 inches at the end of the sleeves.  The bottom of the robe is an absolutely magnificent display of hand-made linen open work measuring just a bit over 26 inches.  This bottom embellishment matches the embellishment of the sleeves.  The design in the linen embellishment revolves around a center front design of a chalice with a sun, palm and grape leaves, grapes, the Christ symbol IHS, flowers with three pedals for the Holy Trinity, and swirling vines.  This embellishment has a magnificent scalloped bottom.  The entire robe is expertly constructed with French seams, and the bottom linen piece has been hand stitched to a pleat in the robe.  The embellished piece at the bottom of the robe has been generously, precicely pleated in the center back to provide room for walking.  This is an amazing robe that has been constructed from the finest of materials by accomplished professional seamstresses.  It appears to be new and unused; it has no stains, holes, or evidence of wear.  Due to the style and expert construction, this robe could be easily altered.  The length of the robe and of the sleeves could be easily altered with tucks in the linen.  These additional tucks could even add to the beauty of the robe.  So, this robe when altered could fit many sizes.

This robe has the following measurements:

The neck opening is 17 inches long down the front; pit to pit this robe measures 31 inches.  The yolk across the back measures 20.25 inches.  Measuring from the pit to the bottom of the embellished sleeve, the sleeve measurement is 25.5 inches.  The entire robe down the center back is 60 inches long.  The embellished bottom of the robe measures 26 inches long and 84 inches around at the bottom.  This embellished pieces for the sleeves and bottom of the robe have no seams, so they were probably specifically constructed for this robe.

We do not know the age of this robe; it was an estate sale find; a father in the family was a member of the clergy, and he was born at the beginning of the 20th century.  It was found with the family's collection of exquisite vintage linens. 

This robe has been carefully packaged, and it is ready to ship from our smoke-free, pet-free home to the winning bidder.  We welcome international bidders; please contact us for a quote on shipping.  We kindly request that payment be made within seven days after the auction ends.