Loading, please wait...
Details
LOT 0449
Egyptian Mounted Coptic Textile with Running Hounds
CIRCA 6TH-7TH CENTURY A.D.
23 1/4 x 9 5/8 in. (163 grams, 59 x 24.5 cm).
Comprising a large fragment with a vertical band (clavus) from a garment, woven in linen and green, blue, yellow and red wool, embroidered with circular patterns filled with vegetal figures and arabesques, alternating with two parallel rows of running animals (hounds?), edged by a red border, a further band of foliage decoration. [No Reserve]
Provenance
Acquired 1970s-1996.
Property of a North American collector.
London collection, 2016.
Literature
Cf. Wulff, O. & W.F. Volbach, Spätantike und koptische Stoffe aus ägyptischen Grabfunden in den Staatlichen Museen Kaiser-Friedrich-Museum / Ägyptisches Museum Schliemann-Sammlung, Berlin, 1926, no.9676, p.96, for similar textile.
Footnotes
Tapestry technique on natural linen. It is highly probable that this tapestry was part of a long decorated tunic, a clavus running vertically on the breast and on the back of it, and having a parallel clavus on the other side. Tunic decoration conformed to a specific layout with the back mirroring the front. Matching bands called clavi ran on either side of the neck. They could be full length, like our specimen, or stop above the waistline.
CONDITIONVETTING:
TimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
RELATED LOTS
-
Egyptian Faience Bead Necklace
Late Period, 664-323 B.C.Estimate: £150 - 200 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £75
Restrung designer necklace with modern clasp; composed of colourful polychrome beads of mainly cylindrical types. 7.42 grams, 49 cm long
From an early 20th century UK collection. -
.jpg)
Egyptian Alabaster Trussed Duck
Old Kingdom, 6th Dynasty, circa 2345-2181 B.C.Estimate: £10,000 - 14,000 (+bp*)
Opening Bid: £5,000
Carved dressed and ready for consumption, with a plump, stylised form, head and neck resting along the animal's breast, simple linear incising delineating two folded wings to either side, circular recesses for eyes; mounted on a custom-made display stand; cleaned. 354 grams, 12.2 cm (893 grams total including stand)
Acquired before 1970. Private French collection. with Bonhams, New Bond Street, London, 29 April 2009, lot 58. Ex Middle Eastern royal family, living in the UK, 2013-2017. Accompanied by a copy of a French cultural passport no.099505. This lot has been checked against the Interpol Database of stolen works of art and is accompanied by search certificate number no.11841-206397. -
Egyptian Mounted Coptic Textile
Circa 7th-8th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £78
The fragment of a vertical band (clavus) from a tunic (probably an ecclesiastic garment), woven in linen and wool, the central segment embroidered with polygonal patterns and arabesques, with four crosses inscribed in rhomboids, alternating with floral motifs, edged with two plain bands in dark green and medium brown, probably part of the original garment to which the band was applied. 185 grams, 58 x 27 cm
Acquired 1970s-1996. Property of a North American collector. London collection, 2016.
Yellow wool and linen. In this period, when Egypt passed from Roman to Arabian rule, the garments were still conspicuously decorated with stylised foliage, arabesques and meanders, geometric figures, often made in yellow or white wool over a linen background.
