Stylistically this chasuble is very much a reflection of French liturgical tastes during this period. At this time plain velvets were frequently used in French vestment design, particularly for liturgical colours like red and black. What's more, the orphrey design, which shows a column on the front and a cross on the back -- as opposed to the inverse for its Italian counterpart -- is also typical to this period, as is the form of ornamentation which not only includes bold naturalistic motifs but also the use of explicit Christian symbolism such as crosses and the like. In many regards, this period of French vestment design shows us an overlap between the designs of the 18th century and earlier with the growing interest in more explicit symbolism which we have seen since the latter half of the nineteenth century onward -- no doubt at least in part a result of the medieval revivalism that was growing in fashion and popularity at that time.
