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A textile fragment shaped like an eight-pointed star and worked in deep violet with a fine white design showing a central circle with geometric shapes, a scalloped ring, and leaves that fill the points of the star.

A tapestry-woven textile fragment in the shape of an eight-pointed star woven in deep violet. In the center of the piece, a circle is woven in a fine pattern of alternating circles and diamonds; each diamond is divided by opposing diagonal lines. The circle is surrounded by a ring with a scalloped pattern. Filling each point of the star are three leaves that meet on either side to form a continuous border around the piece.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1975.41.13
Title
Textile Fragment: Eight-Pointed Star
Classification
Textile Arts
Work Type
textile
Date
4th-5th century CE
Places
Creation Place: Ancient & Byzantine World, Africa, Egypt (Ancient)
Period
Byzantine period, Early
Culture
Byzantine
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/288171

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Wool and linen
Technique
Tapestry
Dimensions
actual: 28 cm (11 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
1975.41.13
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Descriptions

Description
Leaves located at each point define the star shape of this fragment. At each point, three leaves grow from a single stem; two of the leaves are heart-shaped and the other is a grape leaf. The center of the circle contains a double circle and diamond pattern executed in the flying shuttle technique of supplementary weft wrapping in fine, very white linen thread. This created decorative patterns not integrated into the fabric’s structure. Because these threads rest above the tapestry weave, they are easily broken. Such damage can be seen in the double circles at the center of this fragment.

Publication History

  • Ioli Kalavrezou, Byzantine Women and Their World, exh. cat., Harvard University Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2003), p. 157, fig. 82

Exhibition History

  • Byzantine Women and Their World, Harvard University Art Museums, Cambridge, 10/25/2002 - 04/28/2003
  • 32Q: 3740 Egyptian, Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 11/17/2015 - 06/01/2016

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