OTTOMAN TURKEY, PROBABLY 17TH CENTURY

The present lot is from a group of textiles which were woven to cover some of the most important places in Medina: the tombs of the Prophet Muhammad and those of other important religious figures, as well as a curtain in the Masjid al-Nabawi. The appearance of the Kalimat al-Tawhid in the minor chevrons, which invokes God’s blessings on Muhammad and all the Rashidun Caliphs, suggests that this particular textile may have been intended for one of their tombs. The colouring of this example indicates that it belongs to the earliest group: fragments of silk textiles in the Topkapı Palace with very similar designs and colouration bear the names of Sultan Mehmed III (r.1595-1603) and Murad III (r.1623-40), allowing this textile to be dated to the 17^th century (Hülya Tezcan, Sacred Covers of Islam’s Holy Shrines, Istanbul, 2017, p. 207). A further undated textile with similar colouring and inscriptions, as well as small floral motifs in the chevrons similar to the present lot, is also in the Palace’s collection (TSM 13/1659, published by Hülya Tezcan, op cit., no.35, p.209). Another green-ground example was sold in these Rooms, 27 October 2022, lot 164.