Textile Design: Hungry Hare.Hare feeding on a vine, Egypt, 4th century AD. Wool and linen; tapestry weave, 8 x 8" (22 x 21 cm). Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
The Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts, is one of the largest museums in the United States, and contains one of the largest permanent museum collections in the Americas. . Denman Waldo Ross Collection, 96.343b. What do you think of when you think of Egypt? Pyramids? Mummies? Scarabs? Most of us do, but ancient Egyptian culture changed when Alexander the Great conquered the country in 332 BC. Egypt became a Roman province and eventually a new civilization known as Coptic, incorporating Roman, Greek, and Christian influences into Egyptian society. When the Romans banned mummification mummification /mum·mi·fi·ca·tion/ (mum?i-fi-ka´shun) the shriveling up of a tissue, as in dry gangrene, or of a dead, retained fetus. mum·mi·fi·ca·tion n. , Egyptians began to bury their dead clothed clothe tr.v. clothed or clad , cloth·ing, clothes 1. To put clothes on; dress. 2. To provide clothes for. 3. To cover as if with clothing. and wrapped in linen. The dry desert sand helped preserve these fragile textiles over the years. This tapestry shows a hare eating grapes. The tapestry is particularly unusual because of its realistic quality. In ancient Greece The term ancient Greece refers to the periods of Greek history in Classical Antiquity, lasting ca. 750 BC[1] (the archaic period) to 146 BC (the Roman conquest). It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the foundation of Western Civilization. , the hare was a symbol of the goddess Aphrodite Aphrodite (ăfrədī`tē), in Greek religion and mythology, goddess of fertility, love, and beauty. Homer designated her the child of Zeus and Dione. , and often was presented as a gift of love. This particular tapestry of a hare eating the large grapes symbolizes fertility and abundance on earth. ?? Focus on the hare's pose. Why do you think the weaver chose to portray the animal this way? Notice the repetitive shapes within this work. How does this focus your eyes within the weaving? Where do the vines lead your eye? GalleryCard submitted by Kellie Cason-O'Connor, Museum Educator, Department of Education and Public Programs, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. |
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