The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of November 28, 2023

Ornament from a Garment

AD 400s–600s

Egypt, Byzantine period, 5th - 7th period

Tapestry weave with supplementary weftwrapping; undyed linen, dyed wool

Overall: 25.4 x 24.8 cm (10 x 9 3/4 in.); Mounted: 38.1 x 38.1 cm (15 x 15 in.)

Dudley P. Allen Fund 1919.21

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The purple color was achieved using red dye made of madder and blue from the indigo plant.

Description

Six different designs of leaves and interlacing lines are organized harmoniously here within circles, triangles, and squares. Originally part of a garment, interlacing knot designs were thought to symbolically protect the wearer from harm.

Provenance
(Dr. R. Meyer Riefstahl, New York).
Citations
"Accessions." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 6, no. 2 (1919): 37-38. Mentioned: p. 37 www.jstor.org
Exhibition history

Byzantine Gallery 210 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 29, 2004-July 18, 2005).

Coptic Textile Rotation Gallery 106. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 23, 2017-May 14, 2018).

Coptic Textile Rotation Gallery 106. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (November 21, 2022-November 12, 2023).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1919.21