The Gift of Textiles as a Gesture of Munificence in Late Medieval Castile: Literary Testimonies

Generosity stands out as a presumed royal and noble virtue, and that is why giving presents has been a frequent habit throughout history. In this sense, 15th century literature -especially chronicles, because of its detailed descriptions- is full of references to textile as the favorite sumptuary object to boast about this munificence. Thus, this paper compiles some contemporary literature extracts which give clear proof of the importance of textile gifts as a vehicle of messages such as prestige, diplomacy, altruism or even love.