Its been a while since I looked at anything ecclesiastical but since my Zoom class is currently exploring Opus Anglicanum, or English work, I thought that it was about time to look at some church furniture- cope chests – as pictured at York.

A cope is essentially a cloak. The word derives from the Latin cappa meaning cloak or mantle. It originally had a hood – which let’s face it a hood is more useful than a piece of material that looks like a shield and was meant to mimic the shape of the hood – as found on copes up until the twentieth century. The whole thing was originally held in place by a clasp or brooch but bands were introduced later to keep the semi-circular fabric closed.

The first written mention of a cope appears in the late 8th century but it was more an item of everyday wear for monks who wanted to keep warm while singing in the choir than a ritual robe worn by bishops (who presumably were also keen on keeping drafts at bay). The cope’s liturgical significance had already developed by the end of the 8th century but the garments worn by bishops were made of precious silks and heavily embroidered to reflect the bishop’s status, his patrons and of course the lives of Christ and the saints. There are a number of monumental effigies depicting sixteenth century bishops in their copes as well as more modern examples.

Somewhat surprisingly copes remained on the ecclesiastical dress code after the Reformation. The prayerbook of Edward VI depicts him with a group of bishops all dressed in their copes and mitres so that they are immediately identifiable. Problems arose about their use during the time of Charles I, mainly because the Episcopalian Archbishop Laud insisted that they be worn whereas the king’s puritan subjects felt the garment smacked of popishness. The cope disappeared during the Commonwealth period but was reintroduced at the Restoration in 1660.

Meanwhile, back in medieval England the precious textiles were too valuable to be folded – no one wanted wrinkles in their silk or for their gold thread to become worn. And so the cope chest evolved. They were semi circular or wedged, like a cheese, in shape allowing the cope to be laid flat and then gently folded side to middle in a wedge shape. Salisbury Cathedral’s cope chest is believed to be the oldest of the remaining English cope chests – it dates to 1244 and was thought to have been made to house a cope gifted to the cathedral by Henry III. There are seven medieval cope chests in England including the one at Salisbury. They were large items so only bigger foundations would have had the space for them. Wells, Gloucester and Westminster each have one while York has two York’s is the finest – well I would think that-but it has some very fine wrought iron strap work on its lid. There’s also a cope chest at Durham. Tewkesbury’s cope chest is a modern oak chest.

Copes are still in production but some of them are very different from their medieval counterparts, including the wonderful St Paul’s Cathedral Silver Jubilee cope designed by Beryl Dean.

Why not have a closer look by following the link, which opens in a new tab, and seeing how many of London’s churches and peculiars you can identify in addition to St Paul’s Cathedral. http://www.beryldean.org.uk/works/jubilee-cope/