Piece
Unknown Artist
16th–17th century
Medium
Silk
Dimensions
L. 9 1/2 x 9 1/2 inches (24.1 x 24.1 cm)
Classification
Textiles-Velvets
Culture
Italian
Department
European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of The United Piece Dye Works, 1936
Accession Number
36.90.274
Art Historical Context
This charming silk velvet fragment, titled *Piece*, originates from 16th–17th century Italy, a golden era for European textile artistry. Measuring a modest 9½ x 9½ inches (24.1 x 24.1 cm), it entered the Metropolitan Museum of Art collection in 1936 as a gift The United Piece Dye Works Housed in the Department of Sculpture and Decorative Arts and classified as Textiles-Velv, it represents a surviving snippet of luxurious fabric production from Renaissance and early Baroque Italy. Italian velvets were the pinnacle of opulence, woven in renowned centers like Genoa, Venice, and Florence using fi...