Talk:Byzantine silk

New article
Please feel free to expand this article and change/add to the images. Things I know are missing (need to find citations): - PKM (talk) 07:27, 28 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Persistence of Persian/Sassanid textile designs in Byzantine fabrics.
 * Impact on design in Western Europe.
 * Possible influence on Opus Anglicanum


 * Wow, great article, well done! I'll try to add some info on the main production centres (Thebes & Constantinople) and the structure of the state silk monopoly as soon as I find the time, but otherwise it is very comprehensive... Constantine  ✍  12:54, 29 December 2010 (UTC)
 * Thank you! Something on production, guilds, etc., would be a great addition. - PKM (talk) 18:47, 29 December 2010 (UTC)

Random notes on more things to add
I don't want to lose track of these notes when I get busy after the holidays!

Production

 * Byzantium was never able to produce all the raw silk it needed domestically; exports were prohibited; discuss sources of imports. (In AM's PDF)
 * No direct archaeological evidence for looms, but we can deduce much from the surviving fabrics and from written sources. Drawlooms.  "Elephant" silk from tomb of Charlemagne required 1440 changes. Changes in loom technology indicated by introduction of lampas.

Developments

 * Color palette shifts with monochrome lampas (see AM in Jenkins on this pp. 349). Also more dyestuffs.
 * Figured silks with patterns of saints disappeared during Iconoclasm, and never came back in woven fabrics although these themes did return in tapestry and embroidery. So when did saints appear?  Add to paragraph on designs & look for image.

Impact Woven textiles
-PKM (talk) 02:46, 1 January 2011 (UTC)
 * Byzantine impact eastward as well - paired warps in the Byzantine style appear in Central Asia.

Structure
Retitled a couple of sections (I was never happy with "Impact" anyway), primarily to deal with documentation that the Gunthertuch is a woven tapestry rather than an embroidery. Added that info as well after consulation with Johnbod. - PKM (talk) 01:27, 2 January 2011 (UTC)