Safavid Courtiers Leading Georgian Captives

Unknown

mid-16th century · Silk, metal wrapped thread; lampas · Islamic Art

This stunning textile is one of a group of thirteen bearing related scenes of Safavid courtiers and their captives—Georgian nobles, women, and children seized during four military campaigns between 1540 and 1553. Metal-wrapped thread was employed as an additional color in the palette. Now lost, it once embellished the captor’s shirt and horse in the top row and the costume of the captive in the middle and bottom rows.

Artist

Unknown

Date

mid-16th century

Medium

Silk, metal wrapped thread; lampas

Department

Islamic Art

Credit line

Purchase, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1952