Tiraz. Cotton ikat with inscription in gold. Fatimid Yemen, tenth century.

This is a very good example of a cotton ikat with an inscription painted in gold and outlined in blue-black ink, which most probably originated in Yemen, rather than being an Egyptian imitation, as usually ikat from the Yemen are cotton, whereas known Egyptian imitations are linen, as a number in the V&A demonstrate. The textile is dateable to the tenth century, as the inscription is similar to tenth century carved inscriptions on unglazed jars from north-east Persia, , in the Freer Gallery of Art in Washington. The marginal decorative motif also recalls tenth- or eleventh-century Qur’anic illumination as in the Ibn al-Bawwab Qur-an in the Chester Beatty Library.

Technical analysis: Yemeni tiraz. Ground or main part of material: plain or tabby weave. Warp: cotton Z-twist, some ikat-dyed in two different shades of blue. Thread count about 22 per cm. Weft: cotton , Z-twist. Thread count about 13 per cm. Fringe: formed from groups of warp ends Z-twisted together. Inscription: with letters painted in gold which is outlined in dark blue/black. Some of the gold has been rubbed off and can be seen lower down on this fragment of textile.