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Fragment of a curtain
Late Roman-Early Byzantine Egypt
Late Roman/Early Byzantine
4th–6th century A.D.
Object Place: Egypt
Medium/Technique
Undyed linen in plain weave; tapestry weave in colored wools (purple, green, hyellow, red, orange, brown and pink wool) and undyed linen
Technique: Ground in undyed linen in plain weave; design in tapestry weave in colored wools and undyed linen.
Warp: linen (spin direction ?)
Weft: undyed linen and colored wools (spin direction ?);
weft wrapping, slit joins;
woven with warps perpendicular to the design.
Technique: Ground in undyed linen in plain weave; design in tapestry weave in colored wools and undyed linen.
Warp: linen (spin direction ?)
Weft: undyed linen and colored wools (spin direction ?);
weft wrapping, slit joins;
woven with warps perpendicular to the design.
Dimensions
34.5 x 65 cm (13 9/16 x 25 9/16 in.)
Credit Line
Denman Waldo Ross Collection
Accession Number96.331
NOT ON VIEW
ClassificationsTextiles
DescriptionA fragment of a curtain of plain undyed linen with the decoration in tapestry weave in a silhouette style in purple and other colored wools. It shows Nike, the winged goddess of victory, alighting on a column of which only an upper part of the capital is preserved. She wears a necklace and sleeveless folded tunic (chiton) in red and green, her right shoulder and breast bared. The goddess holds wreaths in her raised hands.
The size of the figure and the capital fragment indicate that the complete unit was around 2 meters high and would have been one of several such decorative elements in a long linen curtain.
The size of the figure and the capital fragment indicate that the complete unit was around 2 meters high and would have been one of several such decorative elements in a long linen curtain.
Provenance1896, gift of Denman Waldo Ross (b. 1853- d. 1935), Cambridge, MA, to the MFA. (Accession Date: September 1, 1896