Incorrect Username, Email, or Password
This object does not yet have a description.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1975.41.1
Title
Band with Floral Diaper Pattern
Classification
Textile Arts
Work Type
tapestry
Date
5th-7th century
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Africa, Egypt (Ancient)
Period
Byzantine period
Culture
Coptic
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/288661

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Wool and linen, tapestry woven
Technique
Tapestry
Dimensions
57 x 6 cm (22 7/16 x 2 3/8 in.)

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of The Hagop Kevorkian Foundation in memory of Hagop Kevorkian
Accession Year
1975
Object Number
1975.41.1
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request.

Descriptions

Description
The main portion of this tapestry woven band features a floral design against a red background. Diaper pattern with diamonds formed of small flowers with larger and more elaborate blooms in the interstices. The pattern is positioned so that the large blooms run down the center of the band. Half-blooms on both sides of the band suggest the diaper pattern would continue on either side. Borders of interlocking color segments.
Commentary
Floral diaper patterns like the one featured on this band were common on 5-7th century mosaic pavements of the Eastern Mediterranean, as well as contemporary silks. See Anna Gonosova's discussion of this pattern in the Early Byzantine world, "The Formation and Sources of Early Byzantine Floral Semis and Floral Diaper Patterns Reexamined," in Dumbarton Oaks Papers vol. 41 (1987): 227-237.

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu