The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of June 6, 2026

A tall, golden-yellow silk cap is formed by a wide brim and conical crown featuring black geometric patterns. Intricate eight-pointed stars and intersecting lines cover the surface. Vertical quilted ridges extend from the base to a frayed peak. The worn fabric shows areas of color loss, with coarse brown fibers protruding from the sides. The hat tapers into a point topped by a cluster of frayed threads.

Quilted cap with star-patterned silk

1000s

Iran or Iraq, Buyid or Seljuq period

lampas: silk
Overall: 22 x 20 x 20 cm (8 11/16 x 7 7/8 x 7 7/8 in.)
John L. Severance Fund 1950.525
Location: Not on view

Description

This quilted hat is one of a number of hats that have been recovered from Egyptian graves. It consists of silk sewn to a heavily quilted form, the top part of which is ribbed. The design of the silk is based on an eight-pointed star with paired birds above and stylized palmettes in the interspaces. Such hats were worn with or without a turban by persons of ranks.
  • ?-1950
    (Dr. Emil Delmar [1876-1959], Budapest, Hungary, and New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1950-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Rogers, Clive, and Hero Granger-Taylor. Early Islamic Textiles. Brighton: Rogers & Podmore, 1983. p. 45, fig. 29
    Mackie, Louise W. Symbols of Power: Luxury Textiles from Islamic Lands, 7th-21st Century. Cleveland; New Haven: Cleveland Museum of Art; Yale University Press, 2015. Reproduced: P. 139, fig. 4.8; Mentioned: P. 136
  • Textiles from Egypt, Syria and Spain: 7th through 15th centuries. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 26-June 6, 1991).
  • {{cite web|title=Quilted cap with star-patterned silk|url=false|author=|year=1000s|access-date=06 June 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1950.525