Embroidery "Musica" 1906 by Lady Jane Cory (1866-1947) "Musica" was embroidered in 1906 by Jane Anne Gordon Lethbridge who was born in Taunton, Somerset in 1866. This embroidery was originally paired with another embroidered by Cory, "Poesis", both of which were hung in adjacent recessed panels in her home at 28 Belgrave Square, London. Lady Cory died in 1947 without issue, bequeathing most of her estate to major English museums including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. The National Museum accepted this and eight other large scale embroideries when they were turned down by the Victoria and Albert. The works arrived in Wellington in 1948 and now form part of Te Papa's collection. Design Although she embroidered this picture, Lady Cory did not create the design. "Musica" and another design, "Poesis" were originally created as designs for portieres (door hangings) in the late 19th century by the English artist Edward Burne-Jones. The original coloured artwork for "Musica" was owned by the Hon. Mrs Percy Wyndham who lent this work to The Royal School of Art Needlework for copying as an embroidery cartoon (pattern). Mrs Wyndham also lent her original coloured version to Jane so she could match the colours to the original artwork. Materials and Technique "Musica" is embroidered in worsted wools and silks on a linen ground using long and short stitch, french knots and stem stitch. Jane Cory would have probably used a large freestanding tapestry frame the width of the work which had a device for rolling the embroidery as it was worked. "Musica" took Jane Cory seven and a half months to complete and was her first figure subject. In order to perfect the embroidery of the faces for "Musica" Jane undertook five hours of special instruction at The Royal School of Art Needlework in London. Significance This and the other eight embroideries by Lady Jane Cory constitute a nationally significant body of work, the Arts and Crafts style embroideries being particular important examples of this popular late 19th century English style.