Harvard Art Museums > 1981.31: Fragments from a Tunic Front Textile Arts Collections Search Exit Deep Zoom Mode Zoom Out Zoom In Reset Zoom Full Screen Add to Collection Order Image Copy Link Copy Citation Citation"Fragments from a Tunic Front , 1981.31,” Harvard Art Museums collections online, Apr 18, 2024, https://hvrd.art/o/214511. Reuse via IIIF Toggle Deep Zoom Mode Download This object does not yet have a description. Identification and Creation Object Number 1981.31 Title Fragments from a Tunic Front Classification Textile Arts Work Type textile Date 5th century Places Creation Place: Africa, Egypt Period Byzantine period, Early Culture Byzantine Persistent Link https://hvrd.art/o/214511 Physical Descriptions Medium Wool and linen, tapestry weave Technique Woven, tapestry weave Dimensions 87.5 x 35.5 cm (34 7/16 x 14 in.) Provenance Recorded Ownership History Dikran Garabed Kelekian, New York (by 1951), by descent; Mr. and Mrs. Charles Dikran Kelekian, New York (1951-1981), gift; to the Fogg Museum. Acquisition and Rights Credit Line Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Dikran Kelekian Accession Year 1981 Object Number 1981.31 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 Several tapestry-woven fragments have been mounted on a linen backing in the shape of a tunic front. The largest, uppermost fragment consists of an arcade with four dark purple figures from a Dionysiac group standing under the arches. The leftmost figure is nude with a cap and holds a yellow staff topped with a green detail; this figure is likely Dionysus with his thyrsus staff. This green and yellow thyrsus is the only bit of color in an otherwise monochrome textile and serves to distinguish this first figure from the rest. On the right side of the staff are four purple dots. The same dots also appear under the raised arm of the final figure in the procession. The other three figures below the arcade take the traditional pose common to representations of dancers, with one arm raised and bent at the elbow. After the figure of Dionysus, going from left to right, we find a woman with a long, transparent peplos with one breast bared. This woman twists her body to look over her right shoulder. Next is a man either nude or wearing a loin cloth with some kind of implements at his waist, perhaps a shepherd’s crook. The last figure is a nude female striding to the right. Above her right hand and below her left are some purple shapes, perhaps instruments like castanets. All four figures glance to the right. Many details of these figures are articulated in an undyed supplementary weft in the ‘flying shuttle’ technique. Details of the arcade and animals are also created via flying shuttle. Surrounding the arcade on three sides is a border pattern of dark crow-stepped diamonds outlined in undyed wefts. This border transitions to the pattern of the clavi bands at about the figures’ waist height. Two large rabbits at the start of the clavi pattern also belong to this large fragment. A reinforced selvedge at the top edge of this fragment marks the neckline of the tunic. Rabbits, lions, and grape leaf motifs repeat down the sides. At bottom are a pair of segments with vertical stripes. Commentary Perhaps these pieces have been cut from the front and back of a tunic and combined to approximate the original appearance of the garment. 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
