This was originally written to feature in the Nottingham Bobbin Lace Society newsletter, and now that it has appeared in their Summer 2025 newsletter I thought I would share it to the wider audience.

I have a slight obsession with Crowns that feature in Bobbin Lace at the moment as some you may well know! But thought this little article would be of interest to NBLS as it is Nottingham Lace.

Having managed to collate quite a large folder of photos, newspaper articles, patterns etc. I came across a beautiful lace handkerchief on a well-known auction site, which is not Bobbin Lace but machine lace. It was created for Queen Elizabeth’s Coronation being 2nd June 1953, and I paid the handsome some of £6.49 including postage.

A while later, I found the same piece of lace for sale on the same auction site in the US for circa $5,000.00 plus shipping!!

With the posting came a little history behind this particular piece for sale, which had belonged to a schoolgirl who attended the Sycamore Girls School and was given this as a keepsake. The young girl emigrated to the US shortly after the Coronation and has since passed, hence the sale.

The hanky was described as a ‘Vintage Extremely Rare 1953 Queen Elizabeth 11 Coronation Lace doily’. Anyone else have one buried in a box somewhere?

…..and finally, I even found a newspaper cutting from about this same Royal memento. The photo is not that clear, but you can see it is the same handkerchief. The article gives some detail behind the design, which is interesting:

CORONATION LACE DESIGNS Heirlooms to be Treasured

The Scotsman, Friday, February 27, 1953

“GREAT events in the nation’s history have often been immortalised in lace. One splendid exhibition piece commemorated the Battle of Britain. ring 1951, Festival of Britain themes, based on crystal structures such as were admired in the Dome of Discovery, were bought in large quantities for sale in Great Britain and overseas. Now the Coronation is inspiring some of the finest designs ever seen in the history of the lace industry.

An Outstanding example, specially created for a private display to Her Majesty the Queen, has since been chosen by five of London’s couture designers for their spring collections made in white, it incorporates the floral emblems of England, Scotland, Wales & Ireland. Some of the designs on handkerchiefs approved by the Council of Industrial Design Souvenirs Committee, 'Wales, and Ireland. The rose, thistle, daffodil, and shamrock combine into a delicate flowing motif which several houses, notably Norman Hartnell, the Queen's own dressmaker, have re-embroidered with an outlining gold thread.

Handkerchief borders, edgings, and insertions for blouses and lingerie employ similar symbolic emblems. The rose and the Royal Crown lend themselves particularly well to these narrower laces, but equally successful are fine reproductions of the Royal cipher, E.R. pictures of the Royal coach, of Windsor Castle, and of landmarks which highlight the route to be taken by the procession on its way to Westminster.

Handkerchiefs with these special borders have already been approved by the Council of Industrial Design Souvenirs Committee, and they, and other fine products of Nottingham's famous industry will be treasured, both as heirlooms to be bought and handed on to daughters and grandchildren.”

If you know anymore about this piece of lacee, please let me know. I am sure there a few of these in cupboards, drawers etc.

Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Lace – 1953

The Patricia Bury Pattern Collection