Arkivism
Fragment of Round Segmentum
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Fragment of Round Segmentum

400s–600s CE · Wool: tabby ground, inwoven tapestry ornament

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.

About this work

Segmentum (medallions) like this decorated tunics in Coptic Egypt. Medallions were woven into a tunic’s shoulders or lower half. This medallion's design scheme displays waves encircling geometric shapes and representational images. It features a cross-legged dancer balanced on a vase with hands raised prayerfully. Other dancers clang cymbals while satyrs frolic below them. Coptic can refer to a language, an ethnic group, a religion, or an artistic style (which wasn’t always Christian). Coptic classical imagery reflects the Hellenized (Greek, 305–30 BC) and Roman cultures of Egypt (30 BC–AD 395) before the Byzantine era.

Cleveland Museum of Art’s own description
Credit lineFragment of Round Segmentum, 400s–600s CE. Africa, North Africa, Egypt, Coptic-style weaver(s). Wool: tabby ground, inwoven tapestry ornament; overall: 33 x 29.2 cm (13 x 11 1/2 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund, 1982.271

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