The Feather Room of Moritzburg Palace in Dresden

This is the winner of a Prize.

A striking testimony to a complex and delicate art form, the unique early 18th century Feather Room of Moritzburg Palace has been saved from imminent deterioration.

Wall panels and the surfaces of the canopy bed are decorated by tapestries intricately woven with feathers, the most extensive featherwork produced in Europe, with textiles woven and covered entirely with over two million feathers of vivid and exotic colours. In 1972 it was deemed unrestorable. It was only in 1987 that the Dresden Institute and Museum of History acquired the expertise to save the furnishings. The strips of feather weave were subjected to a special cleaning, after which each feather was individually dried. Broken wood elements were repaired and small carvings reinforced. Missing parts of the feather furnishings were restored with matching fabrics to recreate the original effect.

“For the inventive restoration of a unique ‘Parade’ bed and its textiles of feathers, only recently made possible because of technical advances, and for its remarkable re-composition in a new dignified setting.”

More information
www.schloss-moritzburg.de/en/moritzburg-castle