Embroidered Tapestry
6th century
This heavily damaged fragment depicts a red band containing smiling human figures within circular, golden medallions. The central band is bordered by fish and lions on a darker blue background.
Owing to its repeating vertical composition, this fragment was likely part of a tunic’s clavus, a vertical band that would have run from the garment’s shoulder to its hemline, and would have indicated its wearer’s elevated social status.
Clavi with human figures are not uncommon. Compare this fragment's more iconographically ambiguous figures to the biblical scenes depicted on BZ.1940.45 in the Dumbarton Oaks Byzantine Collection.
Artwork Details
Title:
Embroidered Tapestry
Date:
6th century
Geography:
Egypt
Classification:
Textile
Materials:
Linen and wool
Dimensions:
20 x 9 cm (8 x 3.5 in)
Repository:
McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Accession Number:
McMullen 2018.30
Tellalian Number:
Tellalian 2015-00250
Donor:
Barbara and Donald Tellalian
Provenance:
Purchased from Jane Donahue, from the estate of Kasper Pilibosian, Wellesley, MA in April 2015.
Exhibition History:
No known exhibition history
Publication History:
No known publication history
Conservation History:
Unknown date: Windsor Conservation Center, Dover, MA