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Section of Silk Fabric with Falconers Amid Rose Bushes
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
Twill-weave fabrics were used to make garments, especially jackets, during the Safavid period. It was not until after the 1570s that Iranian textiles began to regularly feature the human figure as a decorative motif. Weavers drew from Persian paintings for their subject matter, such as the favorite princely pastime of falconing. Trained falcons were brought on royal hunts to locate and retrieve the prey; close relationships developed between the falcon and the falconer.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineSection of Silk Fabric with Falconers Amid Rose Bushes, c. 1675. Iran, Safavid period (1501–1722). Silk and silver-metal thread: twill weave with complementary and discontinuous weft; overall: 47.7 x 48.3 cm (18 3/4 x 19 in.); mounted: 58.4 x 58.4 cm (23 x 23 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 1949.467