Icon of the Virgin and Child
Details
- Author / creator
- Egypt, Byzantine period
- Object type
- Textile
- Date or period
- 500s CE
- Dimensions summary
- Overall: 178.7 × 110.5 cm; Mounted: 197.4 × 128.2 × 6.4 cm
- Place of origin
- Egypt
- Acquisition method
- Purchase
- Credit line
- Purchased with the National Heritage Memorial Fund, 1967
- Fibres
- Wool
- Structure
- Plain weave
About this object
Woven from more than 20 colors of woolen thread, this rare tapestry was more expensive than a painting when it was made. The historical price reflected contemporary viewers’ appreciation for the skilled color blending by the weavers. Hung on a wall, this tapestry allowed viewers to venerate (honor) the Virgin Mary and the Christ Child in the Christian Orthodox church. Angels and apostles surround them, their names written in Greek. To be spiritually effective, an icon (devotional image) should follow its subject’s established visual tradition as closely as possible.
Materials and technique
Wool and dye
Signature and marks
on the lintel of the architectural setting, the Greek inscription translates as: The Holy Michael, The Holy Mary, The Holy Gabriel. The wide foliate border is decorated with fruits and flowers and, in the lower part, with medallions containing the busts of apostles whose names are inscribed nearby in Greek and are translated as: Andrew, Matthew, Paul the Apostle, Luke, James, Phillip, Mark, Thomas, John, Matthias, Peter, and Bartholomew.
