Fragment
Unknown Artist
1600s-1700s
Medium
Silk, linen
Dimensions
97.8 × 42.6 cm
Classification
Embroidery
Department
Textiles
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. J. H. Wade
Accession Number
1916.1236
About this artwork
This textile fragment, possibly made from linen, is densely embroidered with silk threads in various shades of pink, red, yellow, and blue. The design is organized as a series of nested squared and some of the bands are patterned with repeating designs that somewhat resemble letters of the Arabic alphabet. The artist didn't use silk thread to make these, but instead stitched around the desired shapes. The letter-like patterns are thus actually parts of the plain base fabric showing through.