Select the image to zoomAlhambra Silk
ca. 1400
Nasrid
Yellow, red, green, dark blue, and white silk
237.5 x 152.3 cm
From the distinguished tradition of Islamic textiles comes this luxurious piece which attests to the high quality of the artisans active in Granada ca. 1400. "Alhambra silks," or "striped Granada cloth," are designed in bands recalling tile mosaics in the Alhambra. The substitution of yellow thread for gold is characteristic of Nasrid textiles from the end of the fourteenth into the fifteenth century. As the viewer traces the decorative patterns of interlacery (laceria), a visual complexity emerges that simultaneously evokes both the infinite in its breadth and the individual in its detail. Here a series of bands composed of such diverse motifs as eight-pointed stars, arabesques, and other forms suggesting flowers alternate and echo each other. The vibrant hues of red, yellow, blue and green complement these perfectly and enhance the effect. Moreover, examples like the one illustrated here frequently contained expressions of peace, hope, or joy embedded in their patterns, with the lettering as one further element of the decoration. In this silk, oblong cartouches enclose a Naskhī inscription, al-'izz al-dā' im (everlasting glory) while another inscription reads al-yumn wa-l-iqbāl (prosperity and acceptance) and a third inscription in Kufic script says al-gibta (happiness).
Text and images © Hispanic Society of America.