Textile ArtsByzantine8th-10th century

Tunic Band: Dancers in a Nile Landscape

8th-10th century

Description

A red crenellated border on this yellow tapestry-woven band surrounds a repeated pattern of stylized red human figures (some of these are dancers), fish, and fantastic two-headed birds tapestry woven in red yarn. Although the motifs seem scattered across the band, those along the rightmost edge of the band are organized in a repeating sequence. One area of the band is characterized by a use of heavier red shapes with less light-colored detailing. This area includes a large potted plant that can be seen repeating again at the very top of the fragment. Details of figures and border motifs are created in a supplementary white thread in ‘flying shuttle’ technique. Some areas of light colored weft have been lost in the left border, exposing the dark purple warps. Three yellow, female dancers appear at the bottom of the piece against a red rectangular background. They take the traditional pose used to represent dancers: one leg striding forward, a twisted torso, both arms bent at the elbow with one hand held high and the other dropped. Identical dancers appear within the main pattern of the band in red. The red rectangle indicates the end of the band, and the orientation of the dancers suggest this is the bottom edge, most likely of a clavus from a tunic. There are plain-woven strips of purple on either side of the inhabited band and dark purple woolen warps run throughout the entire textile. The majority of this textile would have likely been dark purple in color, with several areas of yellow and red tapestry decoration.

Classification

Textile Arts

Technique

Tapestry

Medium

Wool, tapestry woven

Culture

Byzantine

Period

Byzantine period

Century

8th-10th century

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Department

Department of Ancient and Byzantine Art & Numismatics

Dimensions

11.11 x 56.52 cm (4 3/8 x 22 1/4 in.)

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Warp: 2 S ply Z spun white and brown wool warps on one level. Wefts: 1 Z spun yarn, 2 shoots. Pile: 2 S ply Z spun wool. Pile colors: dark red, light red, aubergine, freckled orange (possibly aniline), dark indigo blue, light freckled indigo, yellow-green, green, yellow, aniline ornge, indigo sulfonic, brown and white. Knots: symmetrical. Knots in center area are off-set. 41 knots per vertical decimeter; 25 knots per horizontal centimeter. Both selvedges: bundles of 2 or 3 warps wrapped in red weft material. Top end (listed from edge of pile): band of single line red and blue soumak; band of white and brown 2 ply pile yarn over pairs of warps; 2.5 cm. cicim float brocading using pile yarn on top of a 2 ply red structural weft; single line of soumak; another cm. of same white and brown 2 ply pile yarn, which is then bound over; approximately 7 cm. red pile yarn over pairs of warps. Bottom end: 1 cm. white and brown 2 ply pile yarn; 2 lines of red and blue soumak; 3 cm. slit tapestry weave for ties (to close bag), brown and white soumak; 1/2 cm. tapestry weave; right to left transverse warp braids. Pile is of somewhat remarkably long wool. Ties (to close the bag) are extant: braids in blue, red and brown.

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