- 139
A fine silk samite fragment with paired griffins, late Buyid or Seljuk period, Persia or Central Asia, mid-11th/12th century
Estimate
50,000 - 60,000 GBP
bidding is closed
Description
- silk and cotton
silk, plain and twill weave, paired griffins within inscribed roundels
Condition
Fragments, set and consolidated onto a modern silk backing, some general discoloration and ware to the textile consistent with age and use, very fragile, 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."
"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."
Catalogue Note
inscriptions
‘Glory and prosperity and wealth and victory…’
The designs of luxury textiles from Persia and Central Asia in the tenth to thirteenth centuries soon became representative of power structures in courtly society. Variations on known motifs, such as the roundels and inscriptions that feature on the present textile, ushered in new fashions during a Persian textile renaissance in which many adaptations were assembled from designs in vast pattern books (Mackie 2015, pp.132, 141). Here, roundels of mirrored composition each portray two griffins bordered by an inscription. The repetition of roundels further demonstrates developments in the technology of silk textile manufacture since advancements in draw loom techniques allowed for more complex repeated patterns in woven textiles (ibid., p.133). A popular, established technique in Buyid and Seljuk textiles was samite, which is used here along with a supplementary weft allowing for the detailed pattern. The result was a luxury commodity intended for diplomatic gifts to imperial courts.
Fabrics were commonly adorned with animals and decorative devices such as mythical beasts, which were derived from earlier Sassanian motifs - a particularly favoured design of Buyid rulers (Bloom 2004, p.389). The griffin is a hybrid of the lion and the eagle and, according to Ettinghausen, its association with a ruler would indicate his “semi-divinity and his apotheosis” (Ettinghausen 1975, p.1). Moreover, mythical beasts, including the griffin, were representative of great strength and were said to be able to lift the weight of an elephant, a legend that is linked to a Byzantine textile fragment with a griffin head probably produced in the royal workshops in Istanbul in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (inv.no.764-1893).
There are two further comparable griffins on Buyid textiles: the first depicted in the claws of a two-headed eagle as part of the ornamentation of a textile in The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland (inv. no.1962.264), the second on a textile in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (Caiger-Smith 1985, p.79 no.48). Such creatures were transformed into heavily stylised drawings fashioned from the imagination of the artist (Shepherd 1963, p.66). This extended into all types of ornamentation evidenced in the elaborate foliage and star forms between the roundels, both of which are typical of both Buyid and Seljuk textiles. Inscriptions formed a second category of decoration on textiles, and were divided into two types: the names of historical figures, and a blessing from God to the owner (Mackie 2015, p.133). It is the latter that appears on this textile in an elegant script calling for glory and prosperity. This, along with the distinctive symbolism of the griffin, may link the textile to the celebration of a victory.
‘Glory and prosperity and wealth and victory…’
The designs of luxury textiles from Persia and Central Asia in the tenth to thirteenth centuries soon became representative of power structures in courtly society. Variations on known motifs, such as the roundels and inscriptions that feature on the present textile, ushered in new fashions during a Persian textile renaissance in which many adaptations were assembled from designs in vast pattern books (Mackie 2015, pp.132, 141). Here, roundels of mirrored composition each portray two griffins bordered by an inscription. The repetition of roundels further demonstrates developments in the technology of silk textile manufacture since advancements in draw loom techniques allowed for more complex repeated patterns in woven textiles (ibid., p.133). A popular, established technique in Buyid and Seljuk textiles was samite, which is used here along with a supplementary weft allowing for the detailed pattern. The result was a luxury commodity intended for diplomatic gifts to imperial courts.
Fabrics were commonly adorned with animals and decorative devices such as mythical beasts, which were derived from earlier Sassanian motifs - a particularly favoured design of Buyid rulers (Bloom 2004, p.389). The griffin is a hybrid of the lion and the eagle and, according to Ettinghausen, its association with a ruler would indicate his “semi-divinity and his apotheosis” (Ettinghausen 1975, p.1). Moreover, mythical beasts, including the griffin, were representative of great strength and were said to be able to lift the weight of an elephant, a legend that is linked to a Byzantine textile fragment with a griffin head probably produced in the royal workshops in Istanbul in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London (inv.no.764-1893).
There are two further comparable griffins on Buyid textiles: the first depicted in the claws of a two-headed eagle as part of the ornamentation of a textile in The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland (inv. no.1962.264), the second on a textile in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (Caiger-Smith 1985, p.79 no.48). Such creatures were transformed into heavily stylised drawings fashioned from the imagination of the artist (Shepherd 1963, p.66). This extended into all types of ornamentation evidenced in the elaborate foliage and star forms between the roundels, both of which are typical of both Buyid and Seljuk textiles. Inscriptions formed a second category of decoration on textiles, and were divided into two types: the names of historical figures, and a blessing from God to the owner (Mackie 2015, p.133). It is the latter that appears on this textile in an elegant script calling for glory and prosperity. This, along with the distinctive symbolism of the griffin, may link the textile to the celebration of a victory.