Woven Silk thumbnail 1
Woven Silk thumbnail 2
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Woven Silk

1550-1600 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Turkey (made)
Bursa (made)

The design of this textile is based on staggered rows of pointed-oval medallions. They have a tulip plant in gold on a green ground at their centre and are surrounded by two gold-ground borders. The spaces between the medallions are filled with two intertwining vines. One is set with pomegranates, the other with tulip flowers. The same pattern appears on an Italian brocade of roughly the same date (1550-1599) in the Kremlin Armouries in Moscow. This Italian brocade is the only known example in which Ottoman patterns were copied for Italian silks.

Object details

Category
Islam
Object type
Woven silk
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Woven Silk
  • Woven Silk
Materials and techniques
Lampas-woven silk, brocaded with metal thread
Brief description
Kemha silk with lattice-framework design, Turkey (probably Bursa), 1550-1600.
Physical description
Kemha silk with lattice-framework design, Turkey (probably Bursa), 1550-1600.
Dimensions
  • Length: 148.5cm
  • Width: 67cm
  • Weight: 6.3kg
plus board
Style
Ottoman
Marks and inscriptions
  • Transliteration
Gallery label
(2006-2012)
Jameel Gallery

Silk with Lattice Design
Turkey, probably Bursa
1550-1600

This kemha silk has an unusual colour scheme which combines green with large areas of gold. The green bands form a lattice framework and are filled with gold tulips and pomegranates, on which red and blue rosebuds are superimposed.

Silk with metal-wrapped thread in lampas weave

Museum no. 1356&A-1877
Summary
The design of this textile is based on staggered rows of pointed-oval medallions. They have a tulip plant in gold on a green ground at their centre and are surrounded by two gold-ground borders. The spaces between the medallions are filled with two intertwining vines. One is set with pomegranates, the other with tulip flowers. The same pattern appears on an Italian brocade of roughly the same date (1550-1599) in the Kremlin Armouries in Moscow. This Italian brocade is the only known example in which Ottoman patterns were copied for Italian silks.
Bibliographic references
  • Nurhan Atasoy and others, Ipek. The Crescent & the Rose. Imperial Ottoman Silks and Velvets, London: Azimuth Editions, 2001, fig. 96. Technical analysis on p. 339 is incomplete.
  • The Arts of Islam, Catalogue of the exhibition held at Hayward Gallery, 8 April - 4 July, 1976, The Arts Council of Great Britain, 1976. 396p., ill. ISBN 0 7287 0081 6 paper bound, 07287 0080 8 cloth bound. Catalogue entry 23, p83
Collection
Middle East Section
Accession number
1356&A-1877

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Record createdFebruary 5, 2003
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O73926/woven-silk-unknown/
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