Portion of a Garment with Geometric Patterns

Portion of a Garment with Geometric Patterns



This finely woven textile was likely once part of a garment, possibly a cloak. The large medallion features patterns woven in gemlike reds, greens, blues, and yellows, as well as the word "Allah" repeating around its outer edge. The piece includes silk and gold metallic threads, signs that it was once an exceptionally valuable cloth.



Elizabeth Dospěl Williams in [Drake and Holcomb 2016]
















Textile Fragment

The importance of clothing in Fatimid ceremonies created a constant demand for complete new wardrobes. The caliph regularly outfitted his entire court with various articles of lavish clothing for the numerous religious, civil, and military ceremonies. This fragmentary mantle, sumptuously adorned with gold, might have been part of a garment destined for such use. Perhaps it was a robe of honor, a khil'a, bestowed upon a member of the court as a royal favor for the caliph. If this were the case, one might expect to see the caliph's name emblazoned across the textile, reminding the wearer who wielded political power.

What we know about medieval Islamic costumes allows us to orient this textile. The preserved fragments make up part of the back of a mantle, with the medallion and large bands running down the center of the back, and the narrow vertical bands to either side. The edges of the fragment do not represent its width; the garment would have continued and wrapped around to the front of the wearer. It is here that a pair of large, inscriptional bands mentioning the caliph's name might have been placed along the vertical length of the textile. The central medallion is encircled by a line of debased nashki script, which might be read as "lillah" or "Allah," although it appears in very stylized form. The preserved decoration is confined to narrowly defined units, but the delicacy of detail can still be appreciated. Similar stylized blossoms running along the borders in no.31.19.4 appear here as finely delineated flowers encircled by interlace and delicate scrolling vines.

[Walker and Froom 1992]

Said Samaan, Mellawi (until 1927; sold to Tano); [ Nicolas Tano, Cairo, 1927–1929; sold to MMA]

New York. The Hagop Kevorkian Special Exhibitions Gallery, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Tiraz: Inscribed Textiles from Islamic Workshops," December 15, 1992–March 14, 1993, no. 16.

New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Jerusalem 1000–1400: Every People Under Heaven," September 26, 2016–January 8, 2017, no. 86.

Drake Boehm, Barbara, and Melanie Holcomb, ed. Jerusalem, 1000–1400: Every People under Heaven. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2016. no. 86, p. 170, ill.

Walker, Daniel S., and Aimee Froom. "Exhibition Notebook." In Tiraz: Inscribed Textiles from Islamic Workshops.. New York, NY: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1992. no. 16, pp. 26–27.