Flowering Plant beside a Pond
Artist
Unknown
Culture
Persian
Datemid–late 1600s, Safavid Dyasty (active 1501–1736)
Creation PlaceIndia, Asia
Mediumcut silk, voided satin velvet with brocading
Dimensions115.4 x 68 cm (45 7/16 x 26 3/4 in.)
ClassificationsTextiles
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1938.2
DescriptionSilver-woven cut velvet panel, woven in fawns, amber, and greens to a design of slender vertical stems of swaying rosettes and blossoms of lilies with serrated curled leafage, a conchiform silver "chin" motive at the root; cut to disclose a golden yellow ground. Framed.Label TextA great patron with wide-ranging interests, Shah Abbas (reigned 1586-1628) is best known for his architectural transformation of Isfahan. Already the richest city in the empire, Isfahan became a major artistic and cultural center under Abbas's patronage. Because he was interested in developing arts that were important for trade, the shah established workshops throughout Persia to produce textiles, rugs, and ceramics. From these state-supported industries came luxury objects that were essential economic assets to compete with Chinese and other foreign goods in the domestic and the export markets. The elegant taste of Shah Abbas's textile workshops is evident in the use of precious materials- silver and gold- and complex weaving techniques. Patterning this silk fragment is a large flowering plant growing out of a tiny "pond" in schematic wavelike form. Rhythmic and fluid in their combined effect, the individual units create an undulating surface design of subtlety and grace.
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about 1680
