Woven Silk thumbnail 1
Not on display

Woven Silk

1550-1599 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This reversible silk is a variation of the Ottoman version of cloth of gold. This was known as a 'seraser', which means 'end to end', because the metal thread ran the full width of the cloth. The design is arranged in bands, which combine gold with one of three colours - blue, deep red and tan. The bands contain patterns based on wavy vines of different types. For example, one is based on a grape vine, and another on a lily plant. Between them are narrower bands containing simpler repeat patterns, which are bounded by multiple fillets. This type of realistic flower decoration, which allows us to identify such flowers as the lilies, dates the silk to the period after the 1550s.

Object details

Category
Object type
Materials and techniques
Woven silk and gilt metal thread
Brief description
1700s, Turkish
Physical description
Piece of woven silk
Dimensions
  • Length: 120cm
  • Width: 67cm
Style
Summary
This reversible silk is a variation of the Ottoman version of cloth of gold. This was known as a 'seraser', which means 'end to end', because the metal thread ran the full width of the cloth. The design is arranged in bands, which combine gold with one of three colours - blue, deep red and tan. The bands contain patterns based on wavy vines of different types. For example, one is based on a grape vine, and another on a lily plant. Between them are narrower bands containing simpler repeat patterns, which are bounded by multiple fillets. This type of realistic flower decoration, which allows us to identify such flowers as the lilies, dates the silk to the period after the 1550s.
Collection
Accession number
648-1894

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Record createdFebruary 13, 2003
Record URL
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