Exploring our Hall and History

Clothworkers’ Hall opened to the public for Open House London on 22 September. Our thanks go to the Clothworkers who volunteered, helping staff to welcome 1,240 visitors and making our building and collections more accessible to the public.

We had visitors of all ages and all walksof life pass through the Hall. Manyexpressed their gratitude that thebuilding – and others like it – in theCity were opened to them for the event.Members and staff were kept busyanswering questions about modernlivery companies, the Clothworkers’core objectives, The Foundation, anddetails about the history of the Halland the collections on display. Manywere interested to learn about teaselsand habicks, and the symbolism behindthe Clothworkers’ coat of arms. Do youknow what the spotted griffins standfor? They signify the guardianship oftreasure and the enactment ofgood deeds!

And of course, many left amazed after having the opportunity to view our Chris Ofili tapestry, The Caged Bird’s Song, in the Livery Hall and compare it to the 18 th -century tapestries, depicting the life of Cyrus, displayed above the staircase.

The Company is looking forward to welcoming public visitors to the Hall for London Craft Week 2019 (Friday, 10 May). We will be partnering with Contemporary British Silversmiths (CBS) to host demonstrations and a public lecture. More information will soon be available online – on The Company’s website (www.clothworkers.co.uk) as well as the London Craft Week website (www.londoncraftweek.com).

Members of the Livery and Freedom who were able to attend events at the Hall this past autumn have been impressed by one of The Company’s most recent commissions: a new bespoke carpet in the Livery Hall.

This past September, a new, dark blue carpet was painstakingly installed in the Hall, replacing the former red one. The carpet was designed and produced by Wilton Carpets, a British company with a rich history of creating beautiful Axminster carpets using both traditional and innovative manufacturing techniques for a diverse variety of buildings. Not only have they provided carpets to other City of London livery companies (such as the entrance hall and staircase at Tallow Chandlers’ Hall), but they have also completed commissions for the Crown and worked with historic landmarks, civic buildings, theatres, hotels, restaurants and more.

Although the current enterprise was founded in 1995, Wilton Carpets is proud to be operating in the town of Wilton, which has been a site of carpet manufacturing for more than 400 years. The first carpet factory was built in Wilton in 1655, and in 1699 William III granted a charter to the clothiers and weavers of the town. In the 1700s, the town was influenced by weavers from Belgium, and in 1749 the ‘Wilton carpet’ was created by cutting loops of ‘Brussels weave’ to raise a nap.

Today, the company’s woven Axminster carpets are designed and made in Wilton using British wool. Its 100-year-old narrowloom machines are still operated beside more modern, robotic, high-speed looms. Find out more at www.wiltoncarpets.com.