Embroidering (process)
Stickerei (Prozess)
Cross stitch (process)
Kreuzstich (Prozess)
Opus plumarium (technique)
Plattstickerei
Technical arts
Technische Künste
Textile arts
Textile Künste
Opus Phrygium
Mosaikstich
Opus phrygionium
initial version
Opus phrygium occurs in Pliny's Naturalis Historia ("pictae vestes iam apud Homerum sunt iis, et inde triumphales natae acu facere id Phryges invenerunt, ideoque Phrygioniae appellatae sunt.") where he claims Phrygians invented the art of emroidery. Although this claim gets treated as factual there is to this day no proof of its veracity. It has been observed however that late Latin term auriphrygium refered to gold embroidery so it is possible that Opus Phrygium in Pliny's time refered to gold work or some type of embroidery including gold. Sources: Textile Research Centre Leiden; ditto citing VOGELSANG-EASTWOOD, Gillian (2016), 'Embroideries from archaeological and historical sources from the Eastern Mediterranean and Iraq,' in: Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood (ed.), Encyclopedia of Embroidery from the Arab World, London: Bloomsbury Academic, pp. 71-77; Morna O'Neil, Crafting Communities Roundtable on Victorian Material Culture, 4 May 2021.
This term requires further research. We know that Semper read Pliny, but this reference alone does not explain his translation of opus phrygium as "Mosaikwerk". From the text of Style (vol. 1, ed. 1, p. 196) it becomes clear that by this Semper means cross stitch, making references to "Noten des Salmasius zum Flavius Vopiscus" and the tombs of Saqqara in Egypt. Further research is needed to establish why specifically these referenes made Semper interpret opus phrygium as cross stitch.
Ms 216 vol. 206 r. "Ueber Unterschied zwischen op. Phryg. und op. Plumarium siehe in den Paragraphen über Stickerei."