Textile Fragment with Hunting Scene

Unknown

8th century · Silk; samite · Islamic Art

This silk fragment depicts a mounted hunter aiming at a leaping panther in an oval roundel with scrolling vegetation. It is closely related to early Byzantine examples woven in Egypt. The motif of hunters on horseback with bows and arrows originates in Sasanian Iran but made its way into Byzantine heraldry, where it was adapted and classicized. The inclusion of an Arabic inscription (the bismillah) places it securely in the early Islamic period. This is a testament to the longevity of the motif and the synthesis of pre-Islamic designs in the early Islamic period.

Artist

Unknown

Date

8th century

Medium

Silk; samite

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1951