Female Robe

Textiles played an important role in Mongol society, as bolts of precious fabric such as silk were regularly requested in place of tributes or send as diplomatic gifts to Mongol chiefs by the Chinese imperial house. Light and easy to transport, textiles were ideal luxury commodities highly appreciated in nomadic contexts.
This oversize formal robe was most probably prepared for a female member of the Mongol ruling elite and reflects a specific trait of the Mongol society: the active role played by women in the public life and in politics, as it also appears depicted in 8th-century AH/14-th century Persian paintings, when Iran and Central Asia were under the rule of the Ilkhanids, the Western branch of the Mongol ruling house.

Sewn of nasij, the most expensive type of golden clothes, this robe was originally covered with golden threads and must have produced a dazzling effect when worn. It is decorated with a pattern of large roundels against a motif of facing birds and floral tendrils. The central field of the roundels shows stylised images of the sun and the moon in pairs surrounded by a band containing twelve smaller roundels with three repeated figures, possible depictions of the Zodiac signs of Leo, Capricorn and Aries. Technical limitations might have prevented the depiction of the full Zodiac; however, the choice of these specific signs might also allude to astrological and solar symbolisms, deeply rooted in ancient Iranian culture and particularly popular during the Seljuq and Ilkhanid periods. While the pattern of large roundels is well-documented, the arrangement of its decorative details is original and results into a unique piece of textile craftsmanship. On the upper back, a pseudo-inscription in foliate kufic runs across the shoulders.