Coptic, Byzantine, Syrian or Arab Horse Archer on a Coptic Textile, Egypt, 7th century

ACCESSION NUMBER: BZ.1946.15
ATTRIBUTION AND DATE: Egypt? Syria?, 7th–9th c.
MEASUREMENTS: H. (warp) 22.4 cm × W. (weft) 18.9 cm (8 13/16 × 7 7/16 in.)
TECHNIQUE AND MATERIAL: Weft-faced compound twill (samite) in polychrome silk

This rectangular silk fragment features a medallion in beige on a blue-purple ground. The center of the medallion features two symmetrically arranged Amazons on horseback, who aim arrows at the felines beneath them. The medallion’s frame consists of repeating floral motifs edged on the inside and outside with repeating geometric patterns. Four semicircles appear at equal intervals in the frame. This silk square is one of many surviving examples portraying bare-chested Amazons hunting their prey.
Source: Dumbarton Oaks

Referenced as Plate CV. Vol 2, The military technology of classical Islam by David Nicolle
Textile fragment, 7th century, Coptic (Dumbarton Oaks Collection, Washington)

Compare this to similar Egyptian or Arab Horse Archers on Islamic or Byzantine Textiles
Other Illustrations of Arab Costume and Soldiers
Other Illustrations of Byzantine Costume & Soldiers
Other 7th Century Illustrations of Costume and Soldiers