The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 21, 2025

Fragment of a Tunic

400s–600s CE

Egypt, Byzantine period

wool: tabby ground, inwoven tapestry ornament
Overall: 94 x 39.4 cm (37 x 15 1/2 in.); Mounted: 99.7 x 48.3 cm (39 1/4 x 19 in.)
Gift of George D. Pratt 1926.143
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

The dark blue dye is made from indigo.

Description

Tunics with decoration on the front and back were worn by both men and women. These long bands, called clavi, feature pairs of stylized haloed figures gesturing, possibly in dance, and wearing short skirts with scarves across their chests. They alternate with pairs of foxes (?) and fish. The ancient repair in the lower center of this woolen winter tunic reveals that decorated cloth was expensive, and thus often mended and reused.
  • -1926
    Mr. George D. Pratt (1869–1935), New York, NY, gifted to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1926-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • G. U. “Coptic Textiles.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 13, no. 9 (1926). p. 196 www.jstor.org
  • Coptic Textile Rotation Gallery 106. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (November 13, 2023-November 10, 2024).
    Coptic Textile Rotation Gallery 106. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 23, 2017-May 14, 2018).
    Coptic Textile Rotation Gallery 106. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 20, 2013-March 17, 2014).
    Byzantine Gallery 210 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (October 27, 2003-October 25, 2004).
  • {{cite web|title=Fragment of a Tunic|url=false|author=|year=400s–600s CE|access-date=21 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1926.143