| Description |
“Fragment of a textile ornament. The fragment retains a group of figures rendered in dark brown on a linen ground that is considerably discolored. The design is a roundel delineated by a plain, solid-color band enclosing a group of men and lions. The men are armed with large stones and small shields, and they wear short mantles. Each attacks a lion. The lion-man groups face in opposite directions and are set one above the other on a diagonal. What remains of the piece is tapestry on grouped linen warps, linen and wool weft 15 x 40 [warp : weft per square cm]. Curving wefts help to accentuate the design. A few small details appear to be embroidered. All yarn is S-twist. Late fifth or early sixth century. Related examples: The style and form of ornamentation on a child’s tunic in Brooklyn, acc. # 749 (Thompson 1971:44, no. 17) is quite similar to [this] fragment. Remarks: The appearance of the textile of which this is a fragment may be inferred from the Brooklyn child’s tunic. In the Brooklyn example, the roundel (really more nearly an oval) that contains the figures is set in a rectangle that is in turn framed with a rinceau. Battles between men and animals are thought to signify the struggle between the good and evil in human nature. The idea is an ancient one, retained in later times. The textiles in this group [DL Carroll # 17-26 (CAS 0389-2379, -2381, -2383, -2387, -2395, -2408A,B, -2418, -2428, -2431, -2587)] are reportedly from Shaikh Abada, or El Sheik Abara - the Arabic name for the site is transliterated variously. The ancient city was named Antinoöpolis after a beautiful Greek youth who drowned near there. It was founded in his memory by the emperor Hadrian around A.D. 13. A major weaving center in antiquity, some of its products have a classical flavor that may derive from Hadrian’s interest in early Greek art. The archaic style of Greece was revived during his reign. Later, in the Christian period, Antinoöpolis became the site of a famous monastery founded by Saint Samuel. While it is impossible to place total reliance on antique dealers’ attributions, the textiles in this group have similarities that make a common source believable. It is assumed that Rietz purchased them as a group, perhaps from a dealer in the vicinity.†[From Looms and Textiles of the Copts by Diane Lee Carroll (San Francisco, CA: Memoirs of the California Academy of Sciences, No. 11, 1988); Catalog # 21, pp. 102, 110.] |
