A silk velvet textile panel, probably Venice, Italy, or Spain, Early 16th Century

of rectangular form, woven on a golden ground with interlaced foliate strapwork in a wine red pile enclosing palmettes and lots blossoms enriched with silver bouclé

Sotheby's New York, 23 October 1953, The Dikran Kelekian Collection Part II, lot 558

Persian Exhibition, Pennsylvania Museum, Philadelphia, Pa., 1926, no.496

Pope, Arthur Upham, Special Persian Exhibition, The Pennsylvania Museum Bulletin, No.107. Vol.XXII, November 1926.
Migeon, Gaston, La Collection Kelekian. Étoffes & Tapis d'Orient & de Venise, Librairie Centrale des Beaux-Arts, Paris, n.d., pl.84. (as Venetian, XVI Century)

In good condition, some wear and tears with associated restoration, some of silver bouclé missing, few minor stains, overall bright and strong colours, as viewed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This beautiful velvet textile, produced in sixteenth-century Italy or Spain, draws inspiration from Persian models and attests to the enduring admiration for Persian decorative designs and motifs in textile production. Arthur Upham Pope highlights this in his text on the textiles shown in the Special Persian Exhibition in the Pennsylvania Museum in 1926: "Many of these pieces are fragmentary, yet they give a dim idea of the incredible luxury and magnificence of which European travelers in Persia in the thirteenth to sixteenth centuries spoke so extravagantly" (Pope 1926).