Textile ArtsNorth African17th century

Pilgrim's Banner

1683

Description

This object is derived from the Ottoman shield-shaped banners known as "sanjak." The decorative program consists of Arabic inscriptions enhanced with talismanic emblems and floral and geometric motifs. The two-bladed sword on the lower half of the banner is known as "Dhu 'l-Faqar. The blades bear an inscription from the Qur'an in Maghribi script. An abbreviated version of the same verse is written in the large horizontal band near the top of the banner.

Classification

Textile Arts

Medium

Silk, silver foil, and gilded silver foil. Lampas with foundation of warp-faced plain weave and discontinuous supplementary wefts bound in plain weave.

Culture

North African

Century

17th century

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Department

Department of Islamic & Later Indian Art

Dimensions

369.6 x 211.8 cm (145 1/2 x 83 3/8 in.) Banner width:: 190.5 cm (75 in.)

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Warp: tightly wound 2 ply undyed white wool. Structural weft: 1 ply Z spun. Decorative (soumak) weft: all 2 Z spun S ply. Colors: yellow, red, blue, dark blue, green, white, undyed brown, aubergine, orange. Countered soumak: light and dark red, aubergine, orange, yellow, light and dark blue. Mildly corrosive brown. 78 rows soumak per vertical decimeter. 72 decorative warps per horizontal decimeter. Both selvedges: 1 bundle of 3 warps wrapped in red brocading. Top end: 3.5 cm. slit tapestry kilim with 1 cm. brocade wefts, doubled (to 4 ply). Bottom end: cut. Which is top and which is bottom is unclear.

19th centuryAzerbaijan