The Mamluks developed a system of emblems or blazons to signify the role of courtiers serving under each sultan. This emblem dates to the reign of Sultan al-Ashraf Qaitbey (r. 1468–96) or of one of his successors, and is likely a fragment from an article of clothing or a piece of furniture. Numerous Venetian Renaissance paintings, including The Reception of the Venetian Ambassadors in Damascus, incorporate strikingly similar Mamluk emblems in their compositions.

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