Medallion Depicting Addorsed Amazons on Horseback

Unknown

6th–7th century · Silk; samite (weft-faced compound twill) · Islamic Art

While the highest-quality silks produced in the Byzantine and Sasanian periods were intended for a relatively small elite, a broad range of simpler, two-color silks were consumed by those emulating the fashionable set. The design of this textile consists of a roundel, framed by a stylized vine-scroll border, enclosing an addorsed pair of amazons on horseback with drawn bows aimed at rampant felines underfoot. This silk was certainly of the type affordable to local elites, who used small amounts of the precious textile to adorn otherwise simple tunics.

Artist

Unknown

Date

6th–7th century

Medium

Silk; samite (weft-faced compound twill)

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1927