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Textile with confronted birds in pearl roundels
7th century
Woven silk (1:2 weft-faced compound twill, samite)
Warp 10 1/4 in. (26 cm); weft 6 3/4 in. (17 cm)
Excavated from Tomb 134 (dated 662), Astana, Turfan, Xinjiang
Uygur Autonomous Region, 1969
Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Museum
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Textiles, such as this fragment, have been preserved in some number
in the
Turfan region due to its dry climate. Derived from Iranian traditions,
pearl
roundels were popular in the Tang period and are found on textiles,
sculpture,
and decorative
arts. Paired birds also reflect Iranian taste. Some
of the
birds wear scarves, and some do not, indicating that the pattern
repeats
only horizontally (the weft direction) but not vertically (the
warp direction).
Characteristic of Iranian weaving, this patterning method spread
east along
the Silk Road into China.
A Closer Look
This 1400-year-old fragment of a silk funereal face cover exemplifies
how technologies and artistic styles merged and influenced each
other. As can be seen in a comparison
with numerous decorative works of art preceding and following
this era, the motif of pearl-like circles arranged in roundels
has long been popular in Iran. Similarly, although the Chinese
produced silk textiles first, the weaving method used in this
example is characteristic of Iranian textiles. Specifically, the
pattern was formed using the weft or horizontal threads rather
than with the warp or vertical ones (stretched onto the loom frame).
Traditionally, Chinese weavers created warp-faced patterns, using
the opposite approach as the production method employed for this
fragment.
Notice
• The decorative motif of repeated pairs of
face-to-face birds framed by a circle of pearl roundels. Describe
the overall effect of this combination of geometric and animal
forms.
Consider
• The exchange of artistic motifs and production
techniques that accompanies the movement of valued commodities
and skilled craftsmen.
• That in hot and dry climates, such as that of eastern
China (modern Xinjiang Autonomous Region), materials such as
textiles, paper, paintings, and wood are often well preserved.
Visit the Met
• The silk fragment made in China or Central
Asia during the late Tang period features dragons within a large
pearl roundel (1998.147). This textile is currently displayed
on the Great Hall Balcony. The Met has an exceptional collection
of early
silk weavings made in China and Central Asia. Because of
their fragility, they are only displayed for three to four months
at a time.
• An ensemble of a caftan
and leggings decorated with animal forms inside pearl roundels
that were found in the Caucus Mountains.
• A jade Belt
Slide from the 12th-14th century demonstrates the continuity
of the decorative motif of a bird inside a pearl roundel frame
in China.
Did You Know?
Silk is made from the fiber or filaments that the
silkworm produces in order to form a cocoon. Indigenous to China,
silkworms begin
as eggs, a state in which they remain for many months. They
only exist as worms (larvae) for a relatively short period,
during which time they consume enormous quantities of mulberry
leaves. They spin their cocoon from one long, continuous filament
of silk. After its gestation period, the moth emerges from the
cocoon, breaking the fiber (this is known as "raw silk"
and must be spun before weaving). Silk cultivators often kill
the worm by steaming or boiling them before it can destroy the
single silk thread that forms the cocoon.
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