Note 341 — Part 5.

The Plumarii mentioned by Pliny were craftsmen in the art of acu pingere, or painting with the needle. Though Seneca speaks of the “opus plumarium” as if it were absolutely feather-work, yet it may have been at that time undergoing its transition into embroidery, suggested by feathers, and imitating them in gold, silver, wool, or thread. When Lucan describes the extraordinary change introduced into Roman habits and luxury by Cleopatra’s splendours, his use of the words, “pars auro plumata nitet,” probably means their imitation or mixture with gold embroidery, and would, therefore, come under the head of “opus Phrygium.”