DescriptionThis beautiful portion of a hanging shows three mounted riders, nude except for their Phrygian caps and the cloaks thrown over their shoulders. Although the riders are placed in an arcade, the dogs at their feet identify the scenes as a hunt. Above the figures are a series of busts in medallions. Below, worked diagonally on the field, are rosettes of varying sizes; baskets full of the fruits of the harvest; and medallions with a Victory, an eros, and another mounted rider. As with most themes found on Egyptian fabrics of the so-called Coptic period, such images were popular throughout the Mediterranean world, on clothing and, as here, on household furnishings. Scenes of the hunt, symbolic of prosperity and well-being, were popular with both Christians and non-Christians. Similar combinations of flowers, baskets, busts, and game animals appear on many fabrics of the fifth century, but few are of such exceptional quality. Typical of this period is the presentation of the animals in profile and the men in three-quarter view. Also typical are the enlarged heads of the men, with the whites of their huge eyes a dominant part of the pattern. This hanging may be from Akhmim, as it is from the collection of Emil Brugsch (Bey), of Cairo, who bought many works from the Akhmim finds.