Decorations and Sleeve from a Tunic 700s Part of a set. See all set records Egypt, Islamic Umayyad or Abbasid period, 8th century Wool; plain weave with slit-tapestry weave Andrew R. and Martha Holden Jennings Fund 1982.107 DESCRIPTION Classical figures and winged animals remained popular during the early Islamic period. The nude male may portray Dionysus, Greek god of wine; he holds his thyrsus, a staff ornamented with ivy leaves and pine cones, as he pours liquid from a small jug for the panther. These colorful designs would have decorated the front or back of a tunic and one sleeve. Elaborate embellishments were cherished. Thus, once a tunic began to fray, its decoration was sewn onto a new one, as seen on this winter-weight woolen tunic cloth. Its finely detailed motifs, some with eccentric drawing, are woven in tapestry weave, the equivalent of painting with weft thread; discontinuous horizontal wefts are interlaced only where needed in the design. PROVENANCE Mrs. Paul Mallon, Paris. EXHIBITION HISTORY Gallery 210 textile rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (October 23, 2001-October 27, 2002). The Year in Review for 1982. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (January 5-February 6, 1983). Byzantine Gallery 210 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 2, 2001-October 15, 2002). Coptic Textile Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 18, 2014-March 2, 2015). Coptic Textile Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (May 13, 2019-May 11, 2020).