Vertical Band in Fine Tapestry
8th-9th century
This textile fragment spectacularly preserves its green-yellow-red color palette. Along the yellow band, three symmetrical, repeated designs are present, containing dancing humans, heraldic birds, and a central figure with outstretched arms. As with the Nimbed Bust Roundel (McMullen 2018.6), the circles around each central figure’s head may be read as haloes (implying Christian sainthood), nimbi (implying pagan devotion), or an ambiguous evocation of both.
The classic green-yellow-red color scheme, found on textiles such as this one, is thought to have influenced (via trade and mobility) the color palettes of early medieval illuminated manuscripts in Britain and Ireland, such as the Book of Durrow (Trinity College Dublin MS 57).
Artwork Details
Title:
Vertical Band in Fine Tapestry
Date:
8th-9th century
Geography:
Egypt
Classification:
Textile
Materials:
Linen and wool
Dimensions:
32.5 x 5.5 cm (12.25 x 2.25 in)
Repository:
McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Accession Number:
McMullen 2018.7
Tellalian Number:
Tellalian 1980-00650
Donor:
Barbara and Donald Tellalian
Provenance:
Purchased from Charles Dikran Kelekian, Ancient Arts, New York, NY on 9 December 1980. Provenance unknown prior to Kelekian family.
Exhibition History:
McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College. Roman in the Provinces: Art on the Periphery of Empire, 14 February - 31 May 2015. https://www.bc.edu/sites/artmuseum/exhibitions/rip/
Publication History:
Nicgorski, Ann M. “The Fate of Serapis: A Paradigm for Transformations in the Culture and Art of Late Roman Egypt.” In Roman in the Provinces: Art on the Periphery of Empire, edited by Lisa R. Brody and Gail L. Hoffman, 153–66, plate 168. Boston College: McMullen Museum of Art, distributed by the University of Chicago Press, 2014.
Conservation History:
May 1982: Textile Conservation Center, North Andover, MA.