Map 2

astana, silk road, stein collection, asia

  • Boar design fragment, 600-700 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.679 (Ast.i.6.01)

    Boar design fragment, 600-700 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.679 (Ast.i.6.01)

    Boar design fragment
    Central Asia
    600-700 AD
    Weft-faced compound twill
    Length 11.9 cm x Width 7.3 cm
    Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.679 (Ast.i.6.01)
    On loan from Government of India and the Archaeological Survey of India

    This textile fragment shows the remains of a boar design in orange and black. One of the boar’s ears is visible, part of a cheek with a tusk and part of the surrounding pearl border. Several textiles with a boar’s head have been discovered in Astana burial grounds. The designs of the head show, during the mid-7th century,  typical Sassanian themes and are in weft-faced compound twill, or samite, a weaving technique which appears not to be used at this time in China. The execution of the patterns and the colour schemes seem to suggest a Sogdian type of manufacture. These textiles were intended for use as a burial face cover.

  • Silk fragments, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.515 (Ast.vi.I.06)

    Silk fragments, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.515 (Ast.vi.I.06)

    Silk fragments
    China
    200-800 AD
    Plain weave in silk, embroidery
    Length 11.8 cm x Width 7.8 cm (largest fragment)
    Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.515 (Ast.vi.I.06)
    On loan from Government of India and the Archaeological Survey of India

    These are four fragments of monochrome plain woven silk, of which two are blue and one buff coloured. The fourth and largest fragment is dark red embroidered with floral design in pale blue, blue, green, cream and brown. Originally the embroidered red fabric was lined with a paler red silk, and there are fragments of this remaining. It is unclear what these textiles would have been used for, although they are likely to have been part of the burial furnishings or the shroud. The burials at Astana were richly attired, not only with textiles but food offerings, articles of personal use, vessels and sometimes miniature models substituting the real thing.

  • Silk fragments, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.99 (Ast.vi.2.04)

    Silk fragments, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.99 (Ast.vi.2.04)

    Silk fragments
    China
    200-800 AD
    Plain and patterned weave in silk, resist dye
    Length 14.5 cm x Width 12 cm (largest fragment)
    Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.99 (Ast.vi.2.04)
    On loan from Government of India and the Archaeological Survey of India

    These textile fragments are of plain woven resist dyed silk with one piece of pattern woven silk showing an animal design attached. The structure of the latter textile is a weft-faced compound plain weave, also known as taquete, and was probably made in the Xinjiang area. The fragments original purpose is unclear although they were probably once part of a burial shroud.

  • Silk gauze fragments, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.314 (Ast.vi.03)

    Silk gauze fragments, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.314 (Ast.vi.03)

    Silk gauze fragments
    China
    200-800 AD
    Gauze weave in silk
    Length 8.5 cm x Width 8 cm (mounted)
    Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.314 (Ast.vi.03)
    On loan from Government of India and the Archaeological Survey of India

    This used to be a really fine and exquisite textile, of which the colours are still clear and strong. The colours of the silk gauze show a checked design but due the delicate nature of its weave only tiny fragments have survived. Stein discovered it in one of the tombs of Astana's burial grounds, where it originally may have been part of the burial furnishings.

  • Stylized animals, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.595 (Ast.vi.I.03)

    Stylized animals, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.595 (Ast.vi.I.03)

    Stylized animals
    Central Asia
    200-800 AD
    Weft-faced compound weave in silk
    Length 18.7 cm x Width 10.7 cm
    Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.595 (Ast.vi.I.03)
    On loan from Government of India and the Archaeological Survey of India

    This textile fragment shows highly stylized animals in red and cream with blue or purple details, of which the top row might be camels. The overall pattern shows some similarity to the grid of Han dynasty textiles such as jin-silks with inscriptions, but the direction of the pattern is shifted 90 degrees. As a feature of Central Asian textiles for a long time, this pattern is a true repeat in the weft direction but not in the warp direction as seen in Chinese textiles of this period. The piece was found in one of the tombs at Astana and perhaps was once part of the burial face cover.

  • Silk damask, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.321 (Ast.x.I.05)

    Silk damask, 200-800 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.321 (Ast.x.I.05)

    Silk damask
    China
    200-800 AD
    Damask weave in silk
    Length 25.1 cm x Width 8.3 cm
    Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.321 (Ast.x.I.05)
    On loan from Government of India and the Archaeological Survey of India

    This modern-looking damask shows leaves within laurels and was discovered in the burial grounds of Astana. Stein states that the fragment came from a garment and it is possible that the yellow silk damask could have trimmed some sort of clothing. The fully clothed bodies buried at Astana were shrouded in textiles and also accompanied by model garments made of paper or silk, placed alongside them, with other funerary gifts.

  • Silk fragments, 650-725 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.594 (Ast.x.1.03)

    Silk fragments, 650-725 AD. Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.594 (Ast.x.1.03)

    Silk fragments
    China
    650-725 AD
    Warp-faced compound weave in silk
    Length 10.7 cm x Width 4.3 cm (largest fragment)
    Museum no. LOAN:STEIN.594 (Ast.x.1.03)
    On loan from Government of India and the Archaeological Survey of India

    This textile was woven in warp-faced compound twill, which was a popular weave structure during the early and late Tang periods. It has a floral roundel pattern with petals in a trilobite shape. A pair of shoes with rolled toe-caps found in another tomb at Astana burial ground are covered with a similar textile. Comparable patterns are also found on silks from the Mogao caves at Dunhuang.