Curtain Fragment (Primary Title)
Fragment of a Curtain: Figure of a Shepherd (Former Title)

Unknown (Artist)

4th century
Coptic
linen and wool
EGYPT
Overall: 16 3/4 × 7 in. (42.55 × 17.78 cm)
64.56.1
Not on view
This fragment shows a young man wearing a nebris (a fawn skin particularly associated with the cult of Dionysos), a common motif in Roman and early Byzantine domestic art. Additional details such as curls in the hair and the chin line were added over the tapestry's surface using the flying shuttle technique but have now worn away. This fragment is probably from a large curtain made of linen with insets of alternating stripes or divides (with ornamentation) and large isolated figures.
Late Roman/Early Byzantine
Arthur and Margaret Glasgow Fund
Image released via Creative Commons CC-BY-NC

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