CIRCA 5TH-7TH CENTURY A.D.

Most likely part of a wall hanging or curtain, this tapestry fragment belongs to a group featuring dark-skinned figures (see K. Colburn, “Dark-skinned Figures in Late Antique Egyptian Textiles”, in A. M. Achi, ed., Africa and Byzantium, pp. 116-120) An example in the British Museum may depict Artemis and Actaeon, while an example in the Coptic Museum shows a piper playing an aulos or flute (see op. cit., no. 79). The ancient textile center of Akhmim in Upper Egypt has been suggested as the place of production of these textiles, which are normally preserved from funerary contexts, regardless of their original function.