Polychrome wool "brocaded' linen of geometric pattern with fringe, 700-1000, Egypt

Full width linen cloth with a repeating all-over abstract design 'brocaded' in red, green, yellow, brownish purple, dark blue and pale blue wool. The design is a grid in which nine dots within a lined square are linked horizontally and vertically by straight bars and diagonally by lines of three small squares. The main decoration, framed by a blue line, ceases a little way in from the selvedges and warp fringes. The discontinous supplementary weft is under 1 over 3, 25 - 26 wool bobbins would have required for the weaving.

Given by Professor P. E. Newberry

High quality linen with tight and even weave. The cloth was given to the Museum by Professor Percy Edward Newberry (1868-1949), who was involved the Egypt Exploration Fund from early on in its history and supervised several excavations in Egypt.

The weaving technique is not strictly speaking a brocading but similar to the Swedish traditional weaving called dukagång, which is with discontinous supplementary weft, also called swivel weave. This can easily be confused with embroidery as long ends are left on the back. Weaving took place with back up.

This complete linen cloth has a repeating all-over abstract design woven with a discontinous supplementary weft and fringes at each end. The polychrome wools are still vibrant and strong in colour.

Many cloths of this type have been recovered in Egypt although at the present we are not certain of their original function. They were found in burials, most of them already used, either wrapping or covering the dead.

T.98-1922