Textile with Lions' Heads, Foliate Ornament, and pseudo-Arabic inscription

14th century

Not on view

The delicate pink ground of this silk, graced with fresh, leaf-green patterns and punctuaced with deep blue accents, reveals medieval dyers’ consummate skill, control, and versatility in creating a range of colors both subtle and vivid. The combination of complementary pink and green threads of similar value, offset by the limited use of the darker blue, also speaks to the weavers’ sophisticated appreciation of the interaction of colors. The result is a pleasing composition that, with its repeating pattern of stylized lion heads amid graceful foliage, recalls a menagerie within a courtly garden.

Artwork Details

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

Title: Textile with Lions' Heads, Foliate Ornament, and pseudo-Arabic inscription
Date: 14th century
Culture: Italian
Medium: Silk; twill and plain weave
Dimensions: 12 1/2 × 18 1/2 in. (31.8 × 47 cm)
Classification: Textiles-Woven
Credit Line: Fletcher Fund, 1946
Object Number: 46.156.33
Curatorial Department: Medieval Art and The Cloisters

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