Restoring the Bishop's Banner
Hanging above the Cathedra, the seat of the bishop, is the Bishop’s Banner. The Textile Conservation Lab worked on the banner in 2023 prior to the bishop’s installation.
The banner is a silk brocade panel with appliques.
It contains the Episcopal Diocese of New York coat of arms, which includes a miter (bishop’s hat), a key (symbol of bishops dating back to St. Peter), and a staff (representing the bishop’s role as shepherd).
The coat of arms contains an eagle (symbol of the United States), crossed swords (from the coat of arms of the bishop of London, under whose jurisdiction the American colonial church first came), and two windmills (from the coat of arms of New Amsterdam, New York City’s first name).
The TCL took down the banner, cleaned it, and stabilized weak silk with sewn transparent net overlays.
It was the returned to its locations in the Cathedral prior to the installation of the Right Reverend Matthew F. Heyd as the XVII Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of New York.
