Hanging thumbnail 1
Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Islamic Middle East, Room 42, The Jameel Gallery

Hanging

17th century (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Iran (made)

The design on this decorative silk hanging combines a variety of styles. It was made in Iran, and the highly stylised blossoms arranged like a tree are typically Iranian. The more naturalistic flowers above the arch, however, resemble Turkish Ottoman designs. The flowers in the border show the influence of new floral designs imported from India after 1600. They are strikingly similar to South Asian patterns in which flowers are shown head on.

Object details

Categories
Islam
Textiles
Access_to_Images 2003
Object type
Hanging
Materials and techniques
Silk with metal thread
Silk (Textile)
Brief description
Hanging (silk panel) with arch, Iran, 1600-1700.
Physical description
Textile. Inner ground is deep blue. A band with floral motifs frames a cusped arch under which are a single stem and three large palmettes, side stems that form three ogives, cloudbands and butterflies. The voided silver spandrels present prunus blossoms.
Dimensions
  • Length: 184cm
  • Width: 117cm
including backboard
Style
Safavid
Marks and inscriptions
The work of Mughith (Bottom left corner)
Gallery label
  • Jameel Gallery Silk Panel with Arch Iran 1600-1700 The design of this textile is eclectic. The highly stylised blossoms arranged like a tree are typically Iranian. The more naturalistic flowers above the arch resemble Ottoman designs. And the flowers in the border are strikingly similar to South Asian patterns in which flowers are shown head on. Silk and metal-wrapped thread in lampas weave Museum no. T.9-1915(Jameel Gallery)
  • SILK Persian; 16th -17th century. Palmettes, butterflies and wisps of cloud, beneath an arch, woven on silk, silver and gold. This piece, which is incomplete at the bottom, is a superb example of pattern weaving on a large scale. Pattern in 1.3 twill on a satin ground.(Used until 10/1997)
Historical context
A similar hanging but on a crimsom ground is in Lyon, Musée Historique des Tissus, 29.52.
Subjects depicted
Floral Patterns
Plum Blossom
Palmettes
Butterflies
Diagonal Ribs
Arches
Clouds
Stylized Flowers
Summary
The design on this decorative silk hanging combines a variety of styles. It was made in Iran, and the highly stylised blossoms arranged like a tree are typically Iranian. The more naturalistic flowers above the arch, however, resemble Turkish Ottoman designs. The flowers in the border show the influence of new floral designs imported from India after 1600. They are strikingly similar to South Asian patterns in which flowers are shown head on.
Bibliographic references
  • Tim Stanley (ed.), with Mariam Rosser-Owen and Stephen Vernoit, Palace and Mosque: Islamic Art from the Middle East, London, V&A Publications, 2004 p.71
  • Ferrier, R. W. (ed), The Arts of Persia, Yale University Press, New Haven & London, 1989. Page 166, pl. 24.
  • Miller, Lesley Ellis, and Ana Cabrera Lafuente, with Claire Allen-Johnstone, eds. Silk: Fibre, Fabric and Fashion. London: Thames & Hudson Ltd in association with the Victoria and Albert Museum, 2021. ISBN 978-0-500-48065-6. This object features in the publication Silk: Fibre, Fabric and Fashion (2021)
Collection
Middle East Section
Accession number
T.9-1915

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Record createdNovember 7, 2003
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O85317/hanging-unknown/
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