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Celestial banquet hanging, from the tomb of Bishop Gurb

1200-1284

The Cleveland Museum of Art

The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States

This rare silk fragment is from a luxurious hanging of brightly colored silk and shiny gold thread that displayed rows of figural roundels on a plain ground. The two turbaned men holding flasks flanking a palmette tree and the turbaned rider with a flying scarf are derived from the ancient Near Eastern imperial themes of the banquet and the hunt. The Arabic inscription framing each roundel proclaims, <em>There is no god but Allah</em>.

This piece along with several others were reportedly found in the tomb of Bishop Gurb (died 1284) in the Cathedral of Barcelona in about 1890.

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  • Title: Celestial banquet hanging, from the tomb of Bishop Gurb
  • Date Created: 1200-1284
  • Physical Dimensions: Overall: 21.2 x 58.4 cm (8 3/8 x 23 in.); Mounted: 30.2 x 67 cm (11 7/8 x 26 3/8 in.)
  • Provenance: reportedly from tomb of Don Arnaldo de Gurb, Bishop of Barcelona [d. 1284], Montaner-Capmany, Barcelona, Spain, (Arturo Ramon Garriga, Barcelona, Spain, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art), The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Type: Textile
  • Rights: CC0
  • External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/1966.368
  • Medium: Silk and gold thread: plain weave with inwoven tapestry weave
  • Inscriptions: Arabic inscription bordering the roundels translates: "There is no god but God."
  • Department: Textiles
  • Culture: Spain, probably Almeria
  • Credit Line: Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
  • Collection: T - Islamic
  • Accession Number: 1966.368
The Cleveland Museum of Art

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