A piece of samite woven in brown and buff/cream silks. Possibly Egyptian or Near Eastern, ca. AD600-900. There are three designs, separated with two lines and bordered on either side with stylised floral patterns. The top design is of a tree with a two large leaves/flowers and some smaller ones (tree of life). One of the large leaves is a paisley. Below this is a geometric shape of a cross and square with floral icons extending from the sides. The bottom design is a large floral icon. The piece is stained with some holes. Similar to 2066-1900.

Samite (twill woven silk) was thought to originate from Persia under Sassanian rule (AD224-651). It was commonly decorated with pairs of animals and birds and set in pearled lotus roundels. It is often found in Western burials, within church possessions and along the Silk Road. Byzantine weaving workshops took on the samite technique to make it an essential weave of the period. It was a luxury textile of the Middle Ages brought to Europe when the Crusades opened up direct contact with the East. It was forbidden to the middle classes of France under the sumptuary rules c. 1470.