1924.87: Fragment with Large Leaf

Identification and Creation

Object Number

1924.87

Title

Fragment with Large Leaf

Classification

Textile Arts

Work Type

textile

Date

4th-6th century

Places

Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Africa, Egypt (Ancient)

Period

Byzantine period, Early

Culture

Byzantine

Persistent Link

https://hvrd.art/o/213699

Physical Descriptions

Medium

Wool and linen, tapestry woven

Technique

Woven, tapestry weave

Dimensions

29.85 x 17.15 cm (11 3/4 x 6 3/4 in.)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Dr. Denman W. Ross

Accession Year

1924

Object Number

1924.87

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Contact

am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu

Permissions

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Descriptions

Description

Large tapestry woven dark green leaf with light green, blue, red, and white details. Undyed warps running perpendicular to the design. The tapestry leaf currently sits atop a plain woven linen fabric. The large size of the leaf suggests this is a fragment cut from a hanging or furnishing rather than a garment. Roman and Byzantine hangings and curtains commonly featured large plant motifs that created the sense of an indoor garden and played with the divisions between interior and exterior space.

Commentary

Large size suggests this is a fragment from a hanging or furnishing rather than a garment.

Publication History

• Ioli Kalavrezou, Byzantine Women and Their World, exh. cat., Harvard University Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2003), p. 173/fig. 91

Exhibition History

• Byzantine Women and Their World, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 10/25/2002 - 04/28/2003

Verification Level