An interwoven narrative

Seeing it here on this table at the Netherlands Institute for the Near East, at first glance one aspect of this object immediately stands out: the incredibly detailed weaving pattern. The fourteen strokes in length (warp) and eighteen strokes in width (weft) are made of only four threads. They are woven in a way that diamond shapes are formed around the center. This has, however, not been done perfectly. Because there is an even amount of warp threads, the pattern cannot be symmetrical. Besides, the maker lacked a few weft threads, resulting in the outermost diamond missing a dot.

Nevertheless, this is a beautiful example of Mesopotamian craftsmanship. The lining, encased in a decorated frame, can be made of both textile as well as straw.”Möbel A. 1. In Mesopotamien § 4.1 Betten,” in Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie band 8, geredigeerd door Ernst Weidner en Wolfram von Soden (Berlin/New York: De Gruyter, 1995), 326-327

The art of weaving was already very advanced early in history. Different patterns are known because they left their prints on clay.John Taylor “Tablets as Artefacts, Scribes as Artisans,” in The Oxford Handbook of Cuneiform Culture, geredigeerd door Karen Radner en Eleanor Robson (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011), 15 Of the art of braiding reeds we know much less. The swampy lowlands of the Tigris and Euphrates resulted in an abundance of this material, but little has stood the test of time. We know from historical texts that it must have been a thriving industry. Some furniture was made of this material, and for reference we can look at Egypt or at modern specimens (Figs. 1 - 2). That is what makes this object so special.