Textile Fragment
Made around 200-700 CE
Accession # 10061-243
This fragment was once part of a larger Coptic ceremonial garment and depicts an icon of Jesus.
A) The figure holding up a hand is Jesus. The faded orb around his head is a halo, which shows his divinity.
B) The yellow ovals in the decorative design reminded Veronica of incense censers. Do you see any similarities between them and the Coptic censer?
C) This textile uses the tapestry weave technique. Weavers utilizing this method weave colored weft (horizontal) threads through plain warp (vertical) threads. The oldest use of this technique dates back to the New Kingdom (around 1400 BCE), and it continues to be a traditional craft in Egypt today.
Photo by Matt Unger, courtesy of
Carnegie Museum of Natural History
