These seven vibrant, colorful fragments once belonged to a precious Iranian textile with a floral design. Lampas textiles made of shimmering metal-wrapped threads and silk were used in Iran for luxurious clothing or furnishings. Judging by the size and rectangular shape formed by the fragments, the original might have served as a wrapping or bundle for clothing, jewelry, or gifts. The variety of the floral motifs and designs (lotus, tulips, split-palmette, scrolling leaves), combined with the rich color palette—comparable to those found in pattern books—must have provided Moore and his staff with abundant inspiration for their own creations, such as the enameled tea set displayed in the gallery to your right.
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Artwork Details
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Title:Textile Fragments
Date:probably late 17th–18th century
Geography:Attributed to Iran
Medium:Silk and metal-wrapped thread; lampas
Dimensions:Textile a: L. 13 5/8 in. (34.6 cm) W. 34 9/16 in. (87.8 cm) Textile b: L. 6 9/16 in. (16.7 cm) W. 34 1/4 in. (87 cm) Textile c: L. 9 1/4 in. (23.5 cm) W. 16 in. (40.6 cm) Textile d: L. 9 9/16 in. (24.3 cm) W. 15 3/4 in. (40 cm) Textile e: L. 4 3/8 in. (11.1 cm) W. 9 1/2 in. (24.1 cm) Textile f: L.7 3/4 in. (19.7 cm) W. 2 13/16 in. (7.1 cm) Textile g: L. 2 3/4 in. (7 cm) W. 3 3/16 in .(8.1 cm)
Classification:Textiles-Woven
Credit Line:Edward C. Moore Collection, Bequest of Edward C. Moore, 1891
Accession Number:91.1.25a–g
Silk Fragments
These seven vibrant, colorful fragments once belonged to a square-shaped Iranian silk textile. At the center, there is a symmetrical floral pattern, composed of a gridlike structure with scrolling leafy branches and alternating red-and-blue stylized lotus blossoms, all set against a golden yellow ground made of metallic thread wrapped around yellow silk. Three borders frame the central field: a narrow, innermost one of repeating feathery leaves and small, five-petal white-and-green flowers against a red ground; a wider middle border of circular floral motifs alternating with tulips spouting pairs of leafy branches against a whitish ground made of silver-metallic thread wrapped around white silk; and a narrow, outermost band of repeating stylized split palmettes against the same whitish metallic thread ground.
In the late seventeenth and the eighteenth century, Iranian workshops produced sophisticated silks employing two kinds of elaborate metallic thread (gold or silver) wrapped around silk to lavishly fill surfaces such as the background here. These fabrics were used by the court and the wealthy classes for clothing, cushions, covers, and other kinds of opulent household decorations.[1] Judging from the size and squarish shape formed by the fragments, the original, almost three feet square piece could have served as a wrapping or bundle (Persian, buqcheh or buqcha) for clothing, jewelry, or gifts. The variety of the floral motifs and designs here—comparable to those found in pattern books—must have provided Moore and his staff with abundant inspiration for their own creations (cats. 18 and 25 in this volume).
Deniz Beyazit in [Higgins Harvey 2021]
Footnotes:
1. For the clothing, see Scarce, Jennifer M. "Vesture and Dress: Fashion, Function, and Impact." In Woven from the Soul, Spun from the Heart: Textile Arts of Safavid and Qajar Iran, 16th–19th Centuries, edited by Carole Bier, pp. 33–56. Exh. cat. Washington, D.C.: Textile Museum, 1987, and for silk production, Sonday, Milton. "Pattern and Weaves: Safavid Lampas and Velvet." In Woven from the Soul, Spun from the Heart: Textile Arts of Safavid and Qajar Iran, 16th–19th Centuries, edited by Carole Bier, pp. 57–83. Exh. cat. Washington, D.C.: Textile Museum, 1987 1987. For a dress with a comparable pattern, see Scarce 1987 [ibid], fig. 4, Portrait of a Lady, Isfahan (ca. 1650–80), Negarestan Museum, Tehran.
Edward C. Moore (American), New York (until d. 1891; bequeathed to MMA)
Catalogue of a Special Exhibition of Textiles. New York, 1915–16. no. 316, p. 76.
Beyazit, Deniz, Maryam Ekhtiar, and Sheila R. Canby. Collecting Inspiration : Edward C. Moore at Tiffany & Co., edited by Medill Higgins Harvey. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2021. no. 136, pp. 201–2, ill.
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