- Title
- Textile Fragment
- Date Made
- 8th-9th century
- Medium
- Wool compound plain weave (taquete)
- Dimensions
- 4 x 11 7/8 in. (10.16 x 30.16 cm)
- Accession Number
- M.2002.1.718
- Collecting Area
- Costume and Textiles
- Curatorial Notes
Textiles from the first centuries of the Islamic era survive mainly in the form of fragments, which nonetheless provide important information about visual culture during this transitional period. They demonstrate that the art of the preceding Late Antique era persisted, as artists who had lately worked under Byzantine and Sasanian patronage continued to follow preexisting conventions but under the new faith and leadership. It is not possible to say whether this brightly colored wool fragment was once part of a garment or a home furnishing such as a curtain or cushion cover. The narrow band of yellow quadrupeds on a green ground probably depicts baboons shown in profile. Perhaps descended from those imported to and venerated in pharaonic Egypt, the baboon appears in other arts of this period (see M.2002.1.9).
2024
