Meet Me at The Met: Laurie Anderson

It’s difficult to pick a favorite object in The Met collection, but New York artist Laurie Anderson finds herself making a beeline to the Mail Shirt with Inscribed Rings (15th–16th century) whenever she visits.

At left, a silver- and gold-colored shirt made of interlocking metal rings. At right, a detail view shows inscriptions stamped on the rings.

Mail Shirt with Inscribed Rings, 15th–16th century. Possibly Iranian. Iron, copper alloy, 49 1/4 x 29 1/8 in. (125 x 74 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase, Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Gift, 2016 (2016.2)

The shirt is constructed entirely of interlocking riveted links or iron and copper alloy, each stamped with the names of Allah and the five leading imams of the Shi’a (i.e. Muhammad, ‘Ali, Fatima, Hasan, and Husayn), who are also collectively known as The Five (Panj tan) or the People of the Cloak (Ahl al-Kisa). These links are occasionally interspersed with links stamped with the talismanic invocation (translated): “There is no hero like ‘Ali and no sword like Dhu’l faqar.” These holy inscriptions ensured that the shirt provided the wearer with talismanic protection against peril.

For Anderson, the shirt remains a source of endless fascination and a happy reminder of the Friday evenings she spent at the Museum with her husband, Lou Reed. Join her in our Arms and Armor galleries as she contemplates the ways objects imprint on us and the charges they carry through time.


Contributors

Chief Digital Officer: Douglas Hegley
Executive Producer: Sarah Wambold
Managing Producers: Christopher Alessandrini, Ann C. Collins
Director: Ann C. Collins
Cinematographer: Axel Baumann
Editor: Caroline Berler
Sound Recordist: Mark Mandler
Production Coordinators: Hayley Theisen, Lela Jenkins
Met Intern: Rozie Brockington
Special Thanks: Laurie Anderson, Stefan Krause, Catherine Chesney

Music:
HEAVY METAL MEMORIES
by Mark Suozzo

Archival:
Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson spotted walking in George’s Street, Dublin - 29 September 2007 by Bang Media International/Alamy


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Mail Shirt with Inscribed Rings, Iron, copper alloy, possibly Iranian
possibly Iranian
15th–16th century