Publication Date
427-487 / 1036 – 1094
Publication Place
-
Museum of Islamic Art
Subject
cotton and silk; Wavy colours, text in texture.
Type
Other
Language
Undetermined
Digital
Yes
Manuscript
No
Physical Dimensions
الارتفاع: 16 سم؛ العرض: 13 سم
Library
Museum With No Frontiers
Library Asset ID
I. 3132
Record ID
object;ISL;de;Mus01;6;ar
Library Location
Museum of Islamic Art
Date
427-487 / 1036 – 1094
Notes
The piece appears in two opposite dark blue sections with inscriptions embroidered in white Kufic script, surrounded by pink branches with white flowers. The two sections embroidered with inscription are separated by a band of red roses with white flowers with four petals extending on the sides of the wavy brown branches on a green background. This small piece, which was originally part of a larger embroidered piece, was compared with an inscription discovered on a piece in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, which had been made on a commission by the Fatimid Emir Al-Mustansir Billah, and it was found that they were almost identical to the point of being identical. The Kufic inscription on the upper part of the piece located in Berlin states: “In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, there is no god but God, Muhammad is the Messenger of God, Ali is the guardian of God.” This is the text of the Islamic testimony. As for the text on the bottom section, it says: “…of what the honorable minister has ordered to be done...” The name of the embroidered piece comes from the name of the embroidery factory in which the writing is embroidered on the fabric. Fabrics were made for the robes of caliphs and high-ranking people in public court factories. The rulers would gift these fabrics embroidered with writings to high-ranking persons, from among their citizens or from abroad, in exchange for the obvious services they provided. These fabrics embroidered with writing were described in medieval sources as precious items. The majority of these embroidered cloth strips come from Egypt, because they are well preserved in a dry climate, and even if they are buried in dry soil, they are also well preserved.
Sample Text
Annette Hagedorn “Piece of fabric” in Discover Islamic Art. Museum Without Borders, 2026. https://islamicart.museumwnf.org/database_item.php?id=object;ISL;de;Mus01;6;ar
