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Silk curtain from the Alhambra palace
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
This is one of two of the largest, most complete, and most ornate curtains to survive from the 1300s when it presumably hung in the royal Alhambra Palace in Granada, the last Muslim stronghold in Spain. Its style, artistic vocabulary, and harmonious proportions reflect the magnificent wall decoration in the Alhambra. The motto of the ruling Nasrid dynasty, "There is no conqueror but God," is inscribed in the end borders and central panel. The inscribed striped silk forming the central panel is more worn, suggesting that it was recycled, most likely during the 1300s.
Cleveland Museum of Art’s own descriptionCredit lineSilk curtain from the Alhambra palace, 1300s. Spain, Granada, Nasrid period. Lampas and taqueté: silk; overall: 438.2 x 271.8 cm (172 1/2 x 107 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Leonard C. Hanna Jr. Fund, 1982.16