Untitled

Unknown

7th–9th century · Woven silk · Asian Art

This piece, showing two confronted animals, likely bulls, is a composite of roundels from different parts of the same length of cloth. This category of textile moved with Sogdian merchants along overland trade routes that linked Central Asia with territories farther west. The tradition of setting animals in pearl roundels has its origins in the late Sasanian period and remained popular in Central Asia for many centuries.

Artist

Unknown

Date

7th–9th century

Medium

Woven silk

Culture

China (Xinjiang Autonomous Region, Central Asia)

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1996