Ask the Scholar
Document scope · 1 page
Scholar
Ask about this object, its catalog metadata, its source description, or the page inventory.
For page-specific OCR and visual context, open one of the page chats.
Source Description
This is one of a large number of silks woven with geometric designs that have traditionally been attributed to Sogdiana. However, the untwisted warps and light weight of the silk indicate that it was woven farther east in Central Asia where Sogdian influence was strong. Similar geometric patterns occur on clothing depicted in paintings found in the Khotan oasis. That region maintained close cultural and economic ties with Sogdiana. Whether this silk was woven in the Khotan oasis or elsewhere in Central Asia is not known.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
127878
label
Samite with roundels of rosettes
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
127878
contentType
object
title
Samite with roundels of rosettes
description
This is one of a large number of silks woven with geometric designs that have traditionally been attributed to Sogdiana. However, the untwisted warps and light weight of the silk indicate that it was woven farther east in Central Asia where Sogdian influence was strong. Similar geometric patterns occur on clothing depicted in paintings found in the Khotan oasis. That region maintained close cultural and economic ties with Sogdiana. Whether this silk was woven in the Khotan oasis or elsewhere in Central Asia is not known.
date
700s-800s
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q79908232
genreSpecific
Textile
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 17.7 x 17.7 cm (6 15/16 x 6 15/16 in.)
cul
Iran
accession
1950.514
Source extras
tec
samite: silk
tombstone
Samite with roundels of rosettes, 700s-800s. Iran. Samite: silk; overall: 17.7 x 17.7 cm (6 15/16 x 6 15/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 1950.514
collection
Textiles
citations
citation
Müller-Christensen, Sigrid, Mechthild Flury-Lemberg, and Karen Stolleis. Documenta textilia: Festschrift für Sigrid Müller-Christensen. München: Deutscher Kunstverlag, 1981.
page_number
p.120
citation
Shepherd, Dorothy G. 1981. “Zandaniji Revisited.” <em>Documenta Textilia / Hrsg. Von Mechthild Flury-Lemberg Und Karen Stolleis</em> 105-122.
page_number
p. 105-122
citation
Watt, James C. Y., Anne E. Wardwell, and Morris Rossabi. <em>When silk was gold: Central Asian and Chinese textiles</em>. 1997.
page_number
figure 2, p. 22, p. 33
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: P. 55, fig. 2.16; Mentioned: P. 55
creditline
John L. Severance Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 06:35:57.184000
sourceId
127878
dept
Textiles
coll
Textiles
med
samite: silk
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
235bb8bbc3812bb7