The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 25, 2024

Embroidered Border: The Death of the First Born and the Israelites Sent Away

Embroidered Border: The Death of the First Born and the Israelites Sent Away

1500s-1600s
Plain weave linen; embroidery in silk; attached border of needle lace
Overall: 18.1 x 50.2 cm (7 1/8 x 19 3/4 in.)
Gift of The Textile Arts Club 1939.355
Location: not on view

Description

The border fragments on the left tell the story of the Israelites baking unleavened bread during the first Passover, after which they were delivered out of captivity in Egypt. In the top panel, bakers mix and knead the dough; the bottom panel shows the bakers standing on a tiled floor while placing the bread into a brick oven. This common household scene would have been familiar to Italian audiences during the Renaissance. Two fragments depict events recorded in the book of Exodus. In the top panel, the pharaoh is shown releasing the Israelites after the last plague (1939.355). In the bottom panel, he changes his mind and pursues them across the parted Red Sea, only to be swallowed up after the Israelites safely crossed (1939.352).
  • H. A. Elsberg Collection.
  • Underhill, Gertrude. "Gifts of the Textile Arts Club." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 33, no. 3 (1946): 24-26. Mentioned pp. 25-26 www.jstor.org
    Wardwell, Anne E. Material Matters: Fifty Years of Gifts from the Textile Arts Club, 1934-1984. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1984. Mentioned: p. 29
    Liscia Bemporad, Dora, and Olga Melasecchi. Tutti i colori dell'Italia ebraica: tessuti preziosi dal Tempio di Gerusalemme al prêt-à-porter. 2019. Reproduced and mentioned; p. 162, No. 37
  • The Colours of Judaism in Italy: Precious Fabrics for Ceremonial Use. Galleria degli Uffizi, Firenze, Italy (organizer) (June 27-October 27, 2019).
    Renaissance lace rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (December 16, 2014-December 17, 2015).
    Material Matters: Fifty Years of Gifts from the Textile Arts Club. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 21-December 30, 1984).
  • {{cite web|title=Embroidered Border: The Death of the First Born and the Israelites Sent Away|url=false|author=|year=1500s-1600s|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1939.355