Fragment of a hanging, plain woven linen with looped wool weft pile, Egypt, 4th Century - 6th Century

Fragment of a plain woven undyed linen cloth, possibly a hanging. Selfbands run at regular intervals through the ground fabric (a band of three wefts every six picks). Additional decoration has been created with looped pile, formed from picks of dyed woolen weft woven into the ground fabric.

The pile decoration depicts a nude putto figure, with skin shaded and highlighted in several shades of pale pink wool, with a green and yellow wing or chlamys and green and yellow necklace. The eyes have been picked out in white and black wool, the mouth in darker red, and the hair in light brown. He is looking back over his shoulder, and holding in one hand a hooked rod attached to an incomplete object in blue and red wool.

Possibly from the same textile as 307-1891.

Objects 275-1891 to 303-1891 purchased from Monsieur Phocion Tano.

A loop pile hanging with a similar motif is in the Haifa Museum, Israel (Inv. No. 6039).

Fragment of a large linen cloth, with a running boy, woven in coloured woollen loops. The boy wears a chlamys and a necklace and holds a hook-shaped rod attached to an object (incomplete).

286-1891