

Textile depicting a courtier in a landscape, 16th century; Safavid
Iran
Silk; lampas
Iran
Silk; lampas
H. 40 in. (101.6 cm), W. 14 1/2 in. (36.8 cm)
Rogers Fund, 1908 (08.109.3)
This collection of four fragments depicts a courtier holding a wine cup amid flowering cypress trees and varied wildlife. The repeat is elegantly rendered with alternating colors for the courtier's cloak, a design device used to create variation and requiring precise planning of the sequence of colored warp threads. The tapered shape of the fragments indicates that this textile was once part of a garment. Similar compositions are found in manuscript paintings produced during the reign of Shah Tahmasp (r. 1524–76).







