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Textile Featuring Arabic Inscriptions

12th century
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 454
While it might be difficult to reconstruct the original appearance of this fragmentary tapestry-woven textile, the decorative style places it within the corpus of surviving textiles of the late Fatimid period, which is characterized by the use of golden yellow and red to create complex braided designs as seen on the top. Also representative of this late period is the shift towards the use of stylized inscriptions rendered in a cursive script. Although truncated, the Arabic inscription in the four bands on the right begins with, "In the name of God, the Merciful and Compassionate, There is no God but God;" while the two bottom lines contain a repetition of the phrase, "Victory is from God."

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Textile Featuring Arabic Inscriptions
  • Date: 12th century
  • Geography: Attributed to Egypt
  • Medium: Linen, silk; plain weave, tapestry weave
  • Dimensions: Mount:
    L. 17 1/16 in. (43.3 cm)
    W. 19 3/4 in. (50.2 cm)
    D. 1 1/4 in. (3.2 cm)
  • Classification: Textiles-Woven
  • Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1929
  • Object Number: 29.136.2
  • Curatorial Department: Islamic Art

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