The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of May 6, 2024
Two Figures Framed by a Jeweled Border
450–550 CE
Overall: 24.1 x 28.6 cm (9 1/2 x 11 1/4 in.); Mounted: 33 x 37.5 cm (13 x 14 3/4 in.)
Location: 003 Special Exhibition Hall
Description
This weaving depicts a haloed man and woman. However, it once had a third figure at left. The textile was damaged before its 1979 acquisition; only the third figure’s partial halo and shoes remained. Staff decided to “close the gap” around the missing area and remove the shoes. While creating a “complete” image, that removal affects our ability to understand the weaving’s subject. Many questions remain: Who are the man and woman? His red cap may identify him as an “Easterner” or a freeman. Who was their missing companion? Continuing research will consider biblical and Greek mythological stories in which threads play a role.- 1979(L'Ibis Gallery, Ltd., New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art).1979-The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Thomas, Thelma K., Jennifer Ball, Edward Bleiberg, Kathrin Colburn, Helen C. Evans, Christine Kondoleon, Brandie Ratliff, and Elizabeth Dospel Williams. Designing Identity: The Power of Textiles in Late Antiquity. 2016. 24Thomas, Thelma K. "Material Meaning in Late Antiquity." In Designing Identity: The Power of Textiles in Late Antiquity. Thelma K. Thomas, ed. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2016. Reproduced: P. 24, fig. 1-1.4
- Africa & Byzantium. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (co-organizer) (April 14-July 21, 2024).Coptic Textile Rotation Gallery 106. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 13, 2019-May 11, 2020).Designing Identity: The Power of Textiles in Late Antiquity. Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, New York University, NY, New York, NY (February 25-May 22, 2016).Coptic Textile Rotation Gallery 106. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 18, 2014-March 2, 2015).Byzantine Gallery 210 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 2, 2001-October 15, 2002).Year in Review: 1979. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (February 13-March 9, 1980).
- {{cite web|title=Two Figures Framed by a Jeweled Border|url=false|author=|year=450–550 CE|access-date=06 May 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1979.58