Textile Fragment
Unknown Artist
6th century
Medium
Linen, wool
Dimensions
Overall: 20 3/8 x 2 5/8 in. (51.8 x 6.7 cm)
Classification
Textiles-Woven
Culture
Coptic
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Nanette B. Kelekian, in honor of Olga Raggio, 2002
Accession Number
2002.494.836
Tags
Art Historical Context
This slender textile fragment, woven from linen and wool in 6th-century Coptic Egypt offers a glimpse into the vibrant world of early Christian artistry. Measuring just over 20 inches long and 2.5 inches wide, it survives as a narrow strip, likely from a larger garment, curtain, or liturgical cloth. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Art Department (gift of Nanette B. Kian in honor of Olga Raggio, 2002), it exemplifies the sophisticated woven textiles produced in monastic workshops around Fayum and Akhmim. The fragment's design features dynamic human figures alongside majestic lions, ...