A section of tapestry woven silk on linen. Egyptian, Fatimid, ca. AD1000-1200. Tiraz. A narrow band (30mm wide) of coloured geometric motifs (red, aqua green, blue and black) is on a background of undyed, glazed linen. The linen is discoloured, 20x20 tpc. In the Abbasid period (AD750-1258) fabrics, called tiraz, were made in present day Iraq and Egypt. Text from the Koran was embroidered across the fabric with a line of geometric shapes above that were probably for decoration. The word came to mean honorific robes with woven or embroidered inscriptions. Text might also include information such as the name of the reigning caliph, place of production and date.