Fragment of a Coat

Textile Fragment

Sultans of the Mamluk period traditionally provided their entire courts with luxurious new ceremonial garments twice a year. Mamluk textiles were also exported to the West and prized by European clergy and royalty for use as ecclesiastical vestments and burial shrouds. These particular demands created an increased need for textile production in Egypt and accounted for the high quality of its textiles.

The inscription on the Metropolitan silk includes a popular Mamluk benediction, "Glory to our lord," to the Sultan al-Malik al-Mu'ayyad. It refers to the only Mamluk ruler to bear this title, Shaykh, whose reign lasted from A.D. 1412 to 1421. The decorative thuluth calligraphy, lotus palmettes, animal motifs, and heraldic emblem of this textile are characteristically Mamluk and are seen also in Mamluk enameled glass, illuminated manuscripts, and inlaid metalwork. These fragments were previously joined to form part of a jacket. The high technical quality, use of silk, and elaborate inscription all suggest that these fragments were indeed part of a magnificent jacket worthy of a member of sultan Shaykh's court.

[Walker and Froom 1992]

Inscription: Repeated Arabic inscription in thuluth script:
Glory to our master, the Sultan al-Malik al-Mu'ayyad

[ Iklé Frères, New York, until 1931; sold to Harry Fluiter for MMA]

New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Renaissance of Islam: Art of the Mamluks," November 21, 1981–January 10, 1982, suppl. #64.

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. 19.

New York. The Hagop Kevorkian Special Exhibitions Gallery, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Five-Petaled Rosette: Mamluk Art for the Sultans of Yemen," June 22–December 31, 1995, no catalogue.

Muhlemann, Corinne. Complex Weaves : Technique, Text, and Cultural History of Striped Silks. Affalterbach, Württ: Didymos-Verlag, cat. no. 9, pp. 232–33, ill. figs. 9.1–9.3.

Dimand, Maurice S. A Handbook of Muhammadan Art. 2nd rev. and enl. ed. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1944. p. 260, ill. fig. 170 (b/w).

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. 19, p. 30.

Evans, Helen, ed. Byzantium: Faith and Power (1261–1557). New York, New Haven and London: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2004. p. 530, ill. fig. 318.1 (b/w).