The Cotta Griccia: How it Was Stored in Sacristies

Rome lore remembers well the old cotta griccia. In hushed tones senior prelates have relayed the story of how these rochets and albs were laundered back in the old days in the Vatican, soaked in starch, pressed in a special grill to make the intricate pleats, and rolled to dry. These images depict how they were kept in sacristies, like an accordion. 

Beauty is rooted in nature. Like an ancient forest constantly rejuvenating itself, the liturgy is always adorned with beauty. The griccia style came into fashion in the late baroque period. The purpose of the pleated design was to enhance beauty in the sacred liturgy. This was done for both albs and cottas (a cotta being essentially a modification of the alb). The cotta (surplice) is given at the conferring of first tonsure and the alb at subdiaconal ordination. This griccia style was reserved to clergy - altar boys and choir boys wore linen surplices. 

It was a lot of work to maintain this tradition and in the mid 1960s the nuns who worked in laundry rooms to curate this custom hung up their hats at the behest of a shift in new trends from the Vatican. It was a sad day seeing this time-honored custom die out with the times. It could have been kept, at least for special occasions.

Those who wore the cotta griccia did so with care. They did not sit in chairs with backs. Instead, they sat on stools so as to avoid wrinkling the back. After Mass they were rolled up and stored this way in sacristy drawers. 

The example in the photos is extremely rare. It was spotted on eBay, still in its original form from the 1960s -- it has not yet been unrolled. It could be either a rochet or an alb. If an alb, a lace bottom would have been stitched on for the sacred liturgy. The cuffs display lovely tool work, obviously made by nuns with tender care and great love in order to adorn the sacred liturgy with great beauty. 

Let us hope in some convent basement in Rome someone will discover one day in a forgotten corner of a laundry room the old iron press that was used to make this unique style. It can then be revived and further studied and applied once again, this time in a modern context at the service of divine worship. 

Source: eBay. Hopefully some good person was able to scoop this up.  

The description read:

Extremely Rare Antique GRICCIA Cotta, Rochet, or Alb body, with lace cuffs.

Not to be missed. These hardly ever come up for sale as they are no longer made and have not been made since the 1960s. Never Used. Made of Linen and never unrolled since the intricate pleats were put in by hand. See how it is still tied up; I have not untied it, so I can’t tell if it’s a rochet or the body of an alb (which would just need a lace skirt to stitched on).

This antique GRICCIA Cotta Cotta, Rochet, or Alb body with lace cuffs is an extremely rare find for collectors of religious vestments or traditional fabrics. The intricate design and attention to detail make this piece a true treasure for those who appreciate the beauty of Catholic Christian art. 87cm long from shoulder to hem.

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