Roundels with Hunters

Description

This textile consists of two fragments mounted together. They are woven with floral roundels that enclose horsemen hunting lions. The theme of riders hunting with lances, the floral frames of the roundels, and the costumes of the hunters were all inspired by silks from the Byzantine world. The stiff, abstracted style, however, is characteristic of Sogdian silks, woven in Sogdiana in Central Asia and often traded to distant markets. These fragments were preserved in a grave in Egypt where they were found sewn as ornaments onto a tunic.

Provenance

Mrs. Paul [Marguerite] Mallon [d. 1977], Paris, France; (Goumaronart, Inc, Paris, France, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art). (?-1982); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1982-)

Roundels with Hunters

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800s

Accession Number

1982.284

Medium

Silk: samite weave

Dimensions

Overall: 26 x 29 cm (10 1/4 x 11 7/16 in.); Mounted: 46.4 x 74.3 cm (18 1/4 x 29 1/4 in.)

Classification

Textile

Museum

The Cleveland Museum of Art

Cleveland, United States

Credit Line

Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund