Advanced Search 
wall hanging
Eastern Mediterranean (Egypt)
Early Byzantine
550-725
Medium/Technique
Linen and wool
Technique: Tapestry weave in colored wools with some linen.
Warp: red wool (S-spun; verify)
Weft: red, blue, green, and yellow wool [all S-spun]; some undyed linen [S-spun].
(Please, verify:
1. S-spinning of the yarns;
2. Possibility that some linen is bleached, esp. in the dress of the figures, as is the case with MFA 27.566;
3 Colors are cited as listed in the original file; review for accuracy]
Technique: Tapestry weave in colored wools with some linen.
Warp: red wool (S-spun; verify)
Weft: red, blue, green, and yellow wool [all S-spun]; some undyed linen [S-spun].
(Please, verify:
1. S-spinning of the yarns;
2. Possibility that some linen is bleached, esp. in the dress of the figures, as is the case with MFA 27.566;
3 Colors are cited as listed in the original file; review for accuracy]
Dimensions
176 x 35 cm (69 5/16 x 13 3/4 in.); Legacy dimension: 0.35 x 1.76
Credit Line
Denman Waldo Ross Collection
Accession Number28.18
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsAfrica and Oceania, Fashion and Textiles
ClassificationsTextiles
DescriptionA substantially preserved long tapestry cover or carpet woven with colored wools, undyed and bleached [please, verify] linen, decorated with the regularly repeated design that imitates the effect of mechanical patterning of draw loom weaving. The extant textile includes the main field and a large portion of the border and it is framed by light color [cream-yellow?]filets, one framing the entire textile the other the main field. The border has dark-blue ground filled with two types of abstract flowers alternating in regular repeat between complete and two halves framed all around with narrow dark [dark purple?] filets. Traces of the red weaving along the top edge may indicate an existence of an outer border. The red grounded field contains eight rows of facing males in pairs as principal design units in repeated pattern in staggered arrangement of one full and one halved unit per row. The men in profile, carry a bowl of fruit with birds between them with one hand while holding facing leashed feline with the other hand. Additional fillers include a shallow dish and a leaf motif. The men have dark hair pulled up in knots and covered with beribboned hats; they wear eastern-style short fitting long sleeved and belted tunics and trimmed cloaks that alternate between green and dark-blue, light leggings and dark boots. The clarity of the dense design is maintained using outlines and alternating color scheme.
[ Background info] Although woven as a tapestry, the design effect of the MFA cover/carpet is very close to Sasanian draw loom silk weaving and can be considered as belonging to the ‘first’ generation tapestry imitations. Here, not only the continuous patterning in the MFA textile approximates the effect of mechanized draw-loom weaving, also all its individual motifs—floral in the border the figural in the main field – were inspired by Sasanian silks. Although Mediterranean trade included exchange of textiles and yarns from as far as China, silks that inspired tapestry imitations were found in Early Byzantine graves, primarily in Antinoopolis in Egypt, on distinct Sasanian garments and are considered products Sasanian silk weaving. They were novelty and appeal of their designs inspired Egyptian weavers to copy them effectively for local use in different yarns and weaving technique. The MFA tapestry belongs to a substantial group that share similar mid 6th to early 7th century dates, firmly established by C-14 testing of many of them.
See Comparanda 2.
[ Background info] Although woven as a tapestry, the design effect of the MFA cover/carpet is very close to Sasanian draw loom silk weaving and can be considered as belonging to the ‘first’ generation tapestry imitations. Here, not only the continuous patterning in the MFA textile approximates the effect of mechanized draw-loom weaving, also all its individual motifs—floral in the border the figural in the main field – were inspired by Sasanian silks. Although Mediterranean trade included exchange of textiles and yarns from as far as China, silks that inspired tapestry imitations were found in Early Byzantine graves, primarily in Antinoopolis in Egypt, on distinct Sasanian garments and are considered products Sasanian silk weaving. They were novelty and appeal of their designs inspired Egyptian weavers to copy them effectively for local use in different yarns and weaving technique. The MFA tapestry belongs to a substantial group that share similar mid 6th to early 7th century dates, firmly established by C-14 testing of many of them.
See Comparanda 2.
Provenance1928, gift of Denman Waldo Ross (b. 1853- d. 1935), Cambridge, MA, to the MFA. (Accession Date: February 2, 1928)