This is not actually a tapestry in the strict sense (that is, a woven textile), but an embroidery, depicting the Norman invasion of England in 1066. By the eleventh century, the most famous of all early embroideries, the Bayeux tapestry, was being worked. It is known that cross stitch embroidery flourished during the Tang dynasty in China (618-906 AD), when it may well have spread westward along the trade routes. It was found in a Coptic tomb in Upper Egypt, where it was preserved by the dry desert climate. The earliest fragment of embroidered cloth includes cross stitch and dates back to the sixth or seventh centuries AD. An ancient Peruvian running-stitch sampler has been dated to 200-500 AD. Ancient wall paintings and sculptures show that embroidery was worked on clothing from the earliest times. To trace the history of cross stitch, we must look back to the very beginnings of embroidery, since it is only relatively recently that cross stitch has been used as the sole stitch in a piece. This article was much appreciated by the CSG team and our Members and it is with pleasure and regret that we continue to include it. Jo Verso was the patron of the CSG when we launched in 1996 and she contributed in many ways in the short time before her accident. I can still remember her threatening to dye my fringe purple and also being at least, partly responsible for the worst hangover in my life! It is now many years since Jo was killed in a car crash, leaving us all in deep shock.

Cross stitch designer names