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Source Description
The rare gold foil and rich purple wool in these two fragments originally enriched a luxurious fabric. Costly gold foil wrapped around a silk core forms the central motif within a diamond, woven in tapestry weave. The surrounding interlacing knot design—achieved with three overlapping squares (in the small fragment) or interlacing squares (in the large fragment)—offered protection from danger and harm. The roundels were woven with extra, or supplementary, linen wefts wrapped on the purple ground. Linen pile loops in the ground fabric resisted abrasion in furnishing fabrics and provided insulation in tunics.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
151261
label
Fragment with Gold Foil and Apotropaic Interlacing Knots
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
151261
contentType
object
title
Fragment with Gold Foil and Apotropaic Interlacing Knots
description
The rare gold foil and rich purple wool in these two fragments originally enriched a luxurious fabric. Costly gold foil wrapped around a silk core forms the central motif within a diamond, woven in tapestry weave. The surrounding interlacing knot design—achieved with three overlapping squares (in the small fragment) or interlacing squares (in the large fragment)—offered protection from danger and harm. The roundels were woven with extra, or supplementary, linen wefts wrapped on the purple ground. Linen pile loops in the ground fabric resisted abrasion in furnishing fabrics and provided insulation in tunics.
date
300s–400s CE
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q79934481
genreSpecific
Textile
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 20.4 x 18.5 cm (8 1/16 x 7 5/16 in.); Mounted: 33 x 33 cm (13 x 13 in.)
cul
Egypt, Byzantine period
accession
1983.140.c
Source extras
tec
undyed linen, dyed wool, and gold foil; plain weave with supplementary weft-loops, slit-tapestry weave with supplementary weft wrapping
tombstone
Fragment with Gold Foil and Apotropaic Interlacing Knots, 300s–400s CE. Egypt, Byzantine period. Undyed linen, dyed wool, and gold foil; plain weave with supplementary weft-loops, slit-tapestry weave with supplementary weft wrapping; overall: 20.4 x 18.5 cm (8 1/16 x 7 5/16 in.); mounted: 33 x 33 cm (13 x 13 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund, 1983.140.c
collection
T - Coptic
formerAccessionNumbers
83.140b
citations
citation
Thomas, Thelma K., Jennifer Ball, Edward Bleiberg, Kathrin Colburn, Helen C. Evans, Christine Kondoleon, Brandie Ratliff, and Elizabeth Dospel Williams. Designing Identity: The Power of Textiles in Late Antiquity. 2016.
page_number
61
citation
Thomas, Thelma K., Jennifer Ball, Edward Bleiberg, Kathrin Colburn, Helen C. Evans, Christine Kondoleon, Brandie Ratliff, and Elizabeth Dospěl Williams. Designing Identity: The Power of Textiles in Late Antiquity. 2016.
page_number
fig. 1-2.8.c, p. 61
creditline
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 07:48:38.162000
sourceId
151261
dept
Textiles
coll
T - Coptic
med
undyed linen, dyed wool, and gold foil; plain weave with supplementary weft-loops, slit-tapestry weave with supplementary weft wrapping
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
3f04ea6a6bfccb23