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Details
LOT 0415
Egyptian Coptic Textile Fragment Group
CIRCA 4TH-8TH CENTURY A.D.
3 3/8 - 8 7/8 in. (42 grams total including package, 8.5-22.5 cm).
Comprising: a decorative tunic stripe (clavus) in purple wool over coarse linen, S-twist tapestry, divided in three sections embroidered with geometric ornaments, borders meander decorated; an orbiculus in white and black wool, S-twist tapestry, embroidered with stylised animals; fragment of fabric in red, yellow, blue and green wool, with vegetal patterns; fragments of a segmentum, in white and black wool, S-twist tapestry, embroidered with stylised figures. [3, No Reserve]
Provenance
Acquired 1970s-1996.
Property of a North American collector.
London collection, 2016.
Literature
Cf. Gayet, M. Al., Le Costume en Egypte, du IIIe au XIIIe Siecle, Paris, 1900, no. 4, pp.86-87, for similar style of clavi; Various, Tissus d’Egypte temoins du monde arabe, VIIIe-XVe siècles, Collection Bouvier, Paris, 1994.
Footnotes
Among the many fragments of wool tunics, several long strips that match to form nearly full-length central pectoral clavi can be found. They are patterned with a profusion of small figures or interlaced abstract designs, birds, plants and animals with a contrasting border filled with geometric motifs.
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Very large tunic fragment with a clavus connected by a thin band to the orbiculus, in red purple, brown and red granate wool over linen, S torsion, embroidered with three tondos decorated with stylised images of dancers with raised heads and curly hair; crenellated borders. 108 grams total including package, 30 cm
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Comprising: an orbiculus in coarse linen and brown wool, S torsion, embroidered with a stylised figure; a fragment of a second orbiculus in red, green, white and black wool, crenellated borders. 11 grams total including package, 47-67 mm
Acquired 1970s-1996. Property of a North American collector. London collection, 2016.
The iconography of this fragment is called "Nilotic," as it depicts plant and human elements linked to life on the Nile River. These images are recurrent on Coptic textiles. Weavers created patterns that allowed them to reproduce these motifs on any type of fabric (curtains, tassels, clothing).
