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Persian Silk Textiles

Type Object Region Persia Time c. 500–1500

Persian silk textiles are silk crafts produced within the Persian cultural sphere of the Iranian Plateau and Central Asia, most famous from the Sasan…

Timeline

  1. c. 500–651Ctesiphon · Sasanian EmpireThe Sasanian court maintained silk workshops at Rey, Ctesiphon, and elsewhere, producing brocades and tapestry-woven fabrics with motifs of sacred trees, mounted archery, and pearl roundels, exported in large quantities to Byzantium.
  2. c. 750–1100Rey · PersiaIn the Abbasid period Rey became a major silk center of the Islamic world; workshops inherited Sasanian techniques and introduced Arabic calligraphy and geometric patterns, with products distributed from Baghdad to the Mediterranean.
  3. c. 1260–1335Tabriz · IlkhanateAfter Kublai's brother Hulegu founded the Ilkhanate with Tabriz as its capital, Persian silk textiles incorporated Mongol cloud motifs and dragon-and-phoenix patterns, shipped overland and by sea to China, India, and European churches.
  4. c. 1400–1500Herat · KhurasanThe Timurid court supported silk weaving and miniature-style textiles at Herat and Samarkand, laying technical and aesthetic foundations for the later Safavid golden age of Persian carpets and brocade.

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