The vine scroll, beautifully executed on the textiles seen here, is ubiquitous in the art of the Mediterranean world. It appears throughout the art of the early Byzantine period as a decorative motif, evoking the abundance of nature and the good life. In certain contexts, such as funerary art or church interiors, the motif could take on more specific associations.
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Artwork Details
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Title:Band with Vine Scroll
Date:4th–6th century
Geography:Attributed to Egypt
Medium:Tapestry weave in purple wool (dyed with indigotin-containing dye and madder) and undyed linen on plain-weave ground of undyed linen; details in flying shuttle with undyed linen
Dimensions:Max. H. 12 1/2 in. (31.7 cm) Max. W. 6 1/4 in. (15.9 cm)
Classification:Textiles
Credit Line:Gift of George F. Baker, 1890
Accession Number:90.5.594
MMA 90.5.594 and 2002.494.824: Grapevine-Patterned Textile Fragments
Textiles preserved in Egypt depict variations on the theme of the grapevine, one of the most popular motifs in Byzantine art. Here a graceful dark purple vine scrolls across the breath of band no. 90.5.594 in an undulating rhythm. The curving stem and large leaves are emphasized by the lighter ground. Related vine scrolls in various media demonstrate that the popularity of the motif continued from the Byzantine into the Islamic era (cat. nos. 50, 120, 155, 156, 180 in this volume). Over those centuries, grapevines also often appeared emerging from pots, as seen both on monumental floor mosaics and intimate bone and ivory carvings (cat. nos. 1, 79, 120, 121, 141, 177 in this volume). Often, the vine was inhabited (cat. nos. 120–22, 142 in thi volume). On fragment no. 2002.494.824, made to be applied to a larger textile, possibly a tunic, an inhabited vine contains two confronted four-legged creatures with bright red tongues and large ears. Flanking the pot from which the vine scrolls grow are two rather abstractly formed putti. Similar textile designs often show the putti harvesting grapes.
Originally Dionysian themes, such images may display their owner's awareness of classical traditions (see Evans, p. 18 in this volume). They may also have come to be viewed within a Christian context through Christ's statement "I am the true vine" (John 15:1).[1] On this work, the vine motif is enclosed in an eight-pointed star. The star is outlined by a broad band filled with a simple interlace highlighted in yellow and bracketed by purple–brown and white bands, making it a dominant element of the design, Similar stars with interlaces have been identified as being apotropaic motifs worn to protect the wearer from the evil eye.[2] Like the grapevine, the eight-pointed star would become a popular motif in Islamic art (cat. no. 160 in this volume).
Helen Evans in [Evans and Ratliff 2012]
Footnotes:
1. Robin Cormack and Maria Vasilake, eds. Byzantium, 330–1453. Exh. cat., London, 2008, pp. 188, 418–19, cat. no. 159; Marie-Hélène Rutschowscaya. Coptic Fabrics. Paris, 1990, pp. 86, 90, 91.
2. Henry Maguire. "Garments Pleasing to God: The Significance of Domestic Textile Design in the Early Byzantine Period." Dumbartin Oaks Papers 44 (1990), pp. 215–16.
Emil Brugsch-Bey, Cairo (until 1890; sold to Baker); George F. Baker, New York (1890; gifted to MMA)
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Late Antique Taste and Clasical Themes," November 1, 2008–November 1, 2009.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Classical Imagery in the Early Byzantine Period," November 18, 2008–January 18, 2009.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Byzantium and Islam: Age of Transition," March 14–July 8, 2012, no. 119A.
Evans, Helen C., and Brandie Ratliff, ed. Byzantium and Islam: Age of Transition. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012. no. 119A, pp. 176–77, ill. p. 176 (color).
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