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Length

17th century
Not on view
The complicated figural composition and the color combination of red and yellow, as well as the choice of materials and technique, relate this fabric to earlier traditions in Florentine weaving. In this example, disparate decorative motifs, arranged in a fluid, nearly narrative manner, have a convincing coexistence despite their symmetrical arrangement: dolphins' tails merge into a cartouche that in turn forms the support for an elaborate vase, which is simultaneously a container for a variety of flowers, in whose leaves nest two birds, and a ledge for two winged figures that confront the amorini, bows and arrows at their feet, below. That this particular composition, with motif variations, is also known in different color schemes and fabric types attests to its popularity as a design for a number of furnishing uses.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Length
  • Date: 17th century
  • Culture: Italian, Florence
  • Medium: Silk, bast
  • Dimensions: L. 144 1/2 x W. 22 1/8 in. (loom width) (367.0 x 56.2 cm)
  • Classification: Textiles-Woven
  • Credit Line: Gift of Irwin Untermyer, by exchange, 1994
  • Object Number: 1994.13
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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Stole, Silk, metal thread and bast, Italian, probably Venice
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Grand Piano, Bartolomeo Cristofori Italian, Cypress, boxwood, paint, leather, fir, Italian (Florence)
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