Tunic Fragments with Bird-Headed Creature
Unknown Artist
600–1000
Medium
Camelid fiber, cotton; tapestry weave
Dimensions
88.6 × 101.9 cm
Classification
Textile
Department
Textiles
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Accession Number
2005.53
About this artwork
The bird-headed creature in profile that repeats in each of this tunic's design fields gazes upward, holds a staff of authority in front of its body, and wears an ornate headdress behind which a three-feathered wing can be seen. The extremely high technical quality of such tunics suggests that the Wari reserved bird imagery for their most exalted rulers. Here, the original incorporated more than twice as much yarn as the routine--some 19 miles, all handmade and much dyed an inky, dark blue, the ...