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1. Silk Lampas Weaving China Yuan dynasty (1279-1368) 8 inches x 12 inches (20 cm x 30.5 cm) |
A green lampas-weave silk panel with a gold thread pattern depicting two coiled dragons in roundels, all within a honeycomb-pattern field. A textile of this same pattern, but woven in blue silk, is in the collection of Cleveland Museum and is illustrated on page 153 of “When Silk Was Gold, Central Asian and Chinese Textiles”, by James C.Y. Watt and Anne Wardwell. This green version woven in the same design reaffirms the observation in that catalog that during the Yuan period some textile designs were woven in several different colors. The gold thread used in this weaving is made of gold leaf adhered to paper saturated with cinnabar pigment in that catalog areas of minor wear to the gold surface reveal red highlights (see macro image). This silk is one of several early weavings being deaccessioned from a private collection. Detail: macro Detail: close-up view |