An Impressive Red Vestment Set from the Museu de São Roque in Lisbon, Portugal

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The Museu de São Roque in Lisbon, Portugal (which is attached to the Jesuit church of the same name) appears to be one of those impressive museums of liturgical art you might come across in Europe -- at least, based on the collections I have seen. The museum carries an impressive array of objects, ranging from paintings, reliquaries, metalwork and vestments. Recently I cam across this rather stunning set in red silk lamé that is dated to some point in the 1700's.  The set is absolutely stunning -- worthy, in its quality, of a solemn papal Mass (and given that we are in Lisbon, where the Patriarch of Lisbon famously adopted to many papal traditions as his own, perhaps this should come as little surprise). But regardless of whether these vestments relate to the Lisbonites quasi-papal pretensions or not, what is undeniable is the quality and beauty of the work. It is second to none. 

The set in question include four "lesser" copes (if they can properly be called that as they could each form the most ornate cope in many a set) which could have either been used for the purposes of a Solemn Pontifical Mass, or otherwise for use in Solemn Vespers. However, if the 'lesser' copes of the set impress you, then you'll really want to take a look at the primary cope which is not only extremely rich with embroidery, it has almost papal-mantum like proportions (not quite, but it is certainly beginning to lean in that direction):

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The chasuble, dalmatic and tunicle of the set might seem anti-climactic after such a profuse display of embroidery as shown above, but they too are impressive all the same. 

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The set also includes a matching antependium that is likewise fully embroidered and includes a beautfiul tasseled fringe at its base similar to that used on the copes:

Oft-overlooked pieces in sets such as these are the secondary pieces; humeral veils, maniples, stoles, chalice veils and burses. Sometimes these pieces do indeed end up being rather secondary and you can tell corners were frequently cut, perhaps to save on money or on time. That is not the case in this particular set as you will see.

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Pleasingly the set even includes a missal cushion (if you are not familiar with the missal cushion, you may wish to read our article on the subject, but in short, it is an option used in place of the missal stand upon which to place the altar missal. It is, in fact, one of the more traditional usages that simply lost its currency with the introduction of missal stands made of wood or metal. They always are to come in the liturgical colour of the day and generally take the form you see here in terms of shape and the usage of tassels on each of the corners).

Finally, I'd like to leave you with a bit of a closer look at the embroidery found on the vestments so that you can get a better sense of the quality and texture of the work. The textures are extremely important because they have the function of catching light and shadow, giving works such as these added depth and nuances -- aspects that are sometimes lost under the bright lights of museum displays. 

This museum has many other impressive sets of vestments of comparable style and quality. It is definitely worth putting on your itinerary if you have a passion for liturgical art.

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