Segmentum from a Tunic
Egypt, Abbasid period · 750–99 · Cleveland Museum of Art
What did you think?
Guide
Adjust the guideNew to it · Medium
Nobody has listened to this guide yet. Making it takes about twenty seconds, and after that anyone can hear it straight away.
From the museum
A fierce lion with a pronounced mane takes down a large bull on a purple red ground with stylized trees and plants. Both animals appear to be facing us, the viewer. The border displays a formal wreath of rosettes. This roundel, or circular element, and two additional matching examples suggest that they originally decorated the front and back of a tunic. The scene may be an abbreviated reference to the royal hunt, one of the pleasures of the court that served as propaganda to legitimize the authority of rulers by confirming their ability to control natural resources. The animal battle takes place on a background formed by the spreading branches of a tree with stylized flowers and leaves.
The museum’s own description, in English. Licence: CC0
Ask about this work
Ask in your own words. The answer comes from what the museum has written about the work, and says so when that does not hold it.
Details
- Maker
- Egypt, Abbasid period
- Date
- 750–99
- Medium
- tapestry; linen and wool
- Dimensions
- Overall: 23.5 x 20.4 cm (9 1/4 x 8 1/16 in.)
- Place of origin
- Egypt
- Held by
- Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland · On view · 116 Islamic
- Credit line
- The A. W. Ellenberger, Sr., Endowment Fund
Image: Cleveland Museum of Art, CC0