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The princely sport of falconry was frequently represented in medieval luxury silks. Here, the falconer wears a jeweled turban, the most significant item of men’s dress, and rides sidesaddle on a bull. His tunic displays two small designs: overlapping octagons and the conventional star and cross motif. On his gloved hand, he probably supports a coveted gyrfalcon, a large, superior bird. <br><br>The border displays an inner inscription and an outer animal procession, an ancient Near Eastern theme, of real and mythical creatures. This double cloth has two distinct layers that exchange position according to the pattern. The crisply broken edges and scattered brittle threads are typical of the fragility of authentic medieval Iranian silks.

Page data

Page
1
Source index
0
Type
photo
Media ID
1351d91ef0d38a32
Size
unknown

Document data

ID
143826
Core
obj
Type
object
DTO data
{
    "id": "143826",
    "contentType": "object",
    "title": "Fragment with falconer riding a bull in a rondel",
    "description": "The princely sport of falconry was frequently represented in medieval luxury silks. Here, the falconer wears a jeweled turban, the most significant item of men’s dress, and rides sidesaddle on a bull. His tunic displays two small designs: overlapping octagons and the conventional star and cross motif. On his gloved hand, he probably supports a coveted gyrfalcon, a large, superior bird. <br><br>The border displays an inner inscription and an outer animal procession, an ancient Near Eastern theme, of real and mythical creatures. This double cloth has two distinct layers that exchange position according to the pattern. The crisply broken edges and scattered brittle threads are typical of the fragility of authentic medieval Iranian silks.",
    "date": "1000s–1100s (radiocarbon date, 95% probability)",
    "citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1968.246",
    "rights": "CC0",
    "rightsUri": "CC0",
    "language": "en",
    "wikidata": [
        "Q80044278"
    ],
    "genreSpecific": [
        "Textile"
    ],
    "iiifBase": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1968.246/1968.246_web.jpg",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1968.246/1968.246_web.jpg",
    "largeImageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1968.246/1968.246_web.jpg",
    "imageCount": 1,
    "source": "import",
    "dimensionsRaw": "Overall: 28 x 25.4 cm (11 x 10 in.)",
    "cul": [
        "Iran, Rayy, Seljuk period"
    ],
    "accession": "1968.246"
}

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Document identity
{
    "localId": "143826",
    "label": "Fragment with falconer riding a bull in a rondel",
    "core": "obj",
    "dtoType": "object"
}
Document source metadata
{
    "id": "143826",
    "contentType": "object",
    "title": "Fragment with falconer riding a bull in a rondel",
    "description": "The princely sport of falconry was frequently represented in medieval luxury silks. Here, the falconer wears a jeweled turban, the most significant item of men’s dress, and rides sidesaddle on a bull. His tunic displays two small designs: overlapping octagons and the conventional star and cross motif. On his gloved hand, he probably supports a coveted gyrfalcon, a large, superior bird. <br><br>The border displays an inner inscription and an outer animal procession, an ancient Near Eastern theme, of real and mythical creatures. This double cloth has two distinct layers that exchange position according to the pattern. The crisply broken edges and scattered brittle threads are typical of the fragility of authentic medieval Iranian silks.",
    "date": "1000s–1100s (radiocarbon date, 95% probability)",
    "citation": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1968.246",
    "rights": "CC0",
    "rightsUri": "CC0",
    "language": "en",
    "wikidata": [
        "Q80044278"
    ],
    "genreSpecific": [
        "Textile"
    ],
    "iiifBase": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1968.246/1968.246_web.jpg",
    "thumbnailUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1968.246/1968.246_web.jpg",
    "largeImageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1968.246/1968.246_web.jpg",
    "imageCount": 1,
    "source": "import",
    "dimensionsRaw": "Overall: 28 x 25.4 cm (11 x 10 in.)",
    "cul": [
        "Iran, Rayy, Seljuk period"
    ],
    "accession": "1968.246"
}
Document source extras
{
    "tec": "Silk: double cloth",
    "tombstone": "Fragment with falconer riding a bull in a rondel, 1000s–1100s (radiocarbon date, 95% probability). Iran, Rayy, Seljuk period. Silk: double cloth; overall: 28 x 25.4 cm (11 x 10 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Ayyub Rabenou, 1968.246",
    "collection": "T - Islamic",
    "inscriptions": [
        {
            "inscription": "inner band of a foliate Kufic inscription: \". . .   . . .  wa-bastah wa-'ala['] lil-shay[kh?] al-sayyid al-mansur al-mu['a] yyad Abi Nasr . . . bin[?] . . .\"",
            "inscription_translation": ". . .   . . .  and ease and eminen[ce] to the shay[kh?], the sayyid assisted and aided [by God], Abu Nasr . . . bin[?] . . .",
            "inscription_remark": "The foliate Kufic inscription's calligraphy, text, and style suggest a late 11th or 12th century date, which is supported by a carbon-14 dating of 1002–1221, with 95% confidence.",
            "sortorder": 1
        }
    ],
    "didYouKnow": "The falconer's round face with delicate features represents the ideal Iranian beauty, complemented by the chic round hairballs beside his cheeks.",
    "citations": [
        {
            "citation": "Lee, Sherman E. “The Year in Review for 1968.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em> 56, no. 1 (January 1969): 3–50.",
            "page_number": "Mentioned: p. 48, no. 126; Reproduced: p. 7, no. 126",
            "url": "http://www.jstor.org/stable/25152250"
        },
        {
            "citation": "Blair, Sheila S., Jonathan M. Bloom, and Anne E. Wardwell. \"Reevaluating the Date of the \"Buyid\" Silks by Epigraphic and Radiocarbon Analysis.\" <em>Ars Orientalis</em> 22 (1992): 1–41.",
            "page_number": "Reproduced: p. 27; Mentioned: p. 15",
            "url": "http://www.jstor.org/stable/4629423"
        },
        {
            "citation": "Mackie, Louise W. <em>Symbols of Power: Luxury Textiles from Islamic Lands, 7th-21st Century</em>. Cleveland; New Haven: Cleveland Museum of Art; Yale University Press, 2015.",
            "page_number": "Reproduced: pp. 37, 144, fig. 4.14; Mentioned: pp. 33, 145"
        }
    ],
    "url": "https://clevelandart.org/art/1968.246",
    "creditline": "Gift of Ayyub Rabenou",
    "updatedAt": "2026-05-29 07:23:12.972000",
    "imageUrl": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1968.246/1968.246_print.jpg",
    "sourceId": 143826,
    "dept": "Textiles",
    "coll": "T - Islamic",
    "med": "Silk: double cloth",
    "thumbnail_url": null,
    "image_url": null
}
Page context
{
    "seq": 1,
    "pageIndex": 0,
    "type": "photo",
    "url": "https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1968.246/1968.246_web.jpg",
    "mediaId": "1351d91ef0d38a32"
}