Catalog Number
|
Catalog Number |
CAS 0389-2385 | |
| Category | Textiles | |
| Object Name | Coptic textile fragment | |
| Culture | Coptic Egyptian | |
| Global Region | North Africa | |
| Country | Egypt | |
| State/Prov./Dist. | ||
| County | ||
| Other Geographic Data | unknown | |
| Maker's Name | Unknown | |
| Date of Manufacture | ca. 500-600 CE | |
| Collection Name | Rietz Collection of Textiles | |
| Materials | Linen; Wool | |
| Description | “Fragment of a tapestry square from a cushion (?) (sic). This fragment is part of a square motif with a wide, compound border enclosing five roundels, a small one in each corner, a large one in the center. The pattern is worked in purple, green, orange, and red on a cream-colored ground. The main part of the border contains a braid delineated in white on a purple ground. At the outer edge is an inverted arcade with a small roundel under each arch. What remains of the large central roundel indicates that it may have contained a representation of a centaur. The one extant corner roundel contains a male figure wearing a short cloak and apparently trampling grapes, represented by thirteen purple dots. Next to this corner roundel is a vase from which grows a grapevine. This piece was woven entirely in tapestry with wool and linen weft on wool warp, 11 x 40 [warp : weft per square cm]. Details and the pattern of the border were worked in weft floats. All yarn is S-twist. Sixth century. Remarks: The 3.4 cm of surviving selvedge indicates that the piece may have been woven as a single unit that was then stitched to a larger textile. Similar specimens have been discovered attached to weft-loop-pile textiles intended to cover cushions. This piece belongs to a large group of polychrome textiles that retain design elements derived from Greek art but which have acquired Christian symbolism. Vintage scenes showing the crushing of the grapes to make wine can be understood as a symbol for the sacrifice of Jesus. An overflowing vase, here overflowing with grapevines, sometimes signifies one of the rivers of Paradise. When complete, the design may have included a total of four vases, one for each of the four rivers of Paradise. A centaur or a horseman is a symbol of good, controlling or attempting to control one’s baser instincts. Colorful as this piece is, it should be noted that the disposition of the colors is not at all realistic. Purple is the dominant color, used for the border, the rinceau, and the figures, while red, green, and orange enliven the minor details. [Regarding textiles in this group, DL Carroll # 27-40 (CAS 0389-2378, -2380, -2385, -2386, -2388, -2400, -2404, -2412, -2429, -2430, -2433, -2451, -2452, -2539, -2584, -2585):] By the sixth century two basic types of textile ornaments were used to decorate garments. One, which was in use before the fourth century, was essentially monochrome. Designs in the monochrome class were both non-representational and figurative - the latter included a wide range of subject matter: plant, animal, human, and mythological. The second type is polychrome. Polychrome textiles had been made earlier, but not for use as garments. Extant examples are thought to have been decorative hangings, woven pictures as it were, that are commonly called tapestries. The use of what are essentially miniature tapestries for embellishing clothing is believed to have begun in the sixth century and to have lasted well into the Muslim period.†[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 # 28, pp. 116-118, 194; color plate, cover page.] | |
| Dimensions (cm) | Width = 15., Length = 9.0 | |