The Fatimids / Sartorial Splendour: Tiraz and Contemporary Costume

‘Complete tiraz garments are rare, but fragments indicate they came in an array of colours.’

At the court in Cairo the caliph’s wardrobe and his personal tiraz items were cared for by female staff. Scented flowers from the palace garden would be used to perfume his clothes. A second palatial wardrobe catered for the general court. Complete tiraz garments and other contemporary outfits are rare, but many extant fragments indicate that these textiles were of linen or silk, often embroidered with silk, and in an array of colours. Further clues about the appearance of tiraz items and contemporary dress in general, come from Fatimid wood and ivory carvings and ceramics, which show male and female figures feasting, hunting or making music in outfits that include turbans, shawls and belted tunics, many embellished with tiraz bands.

NameDynastyDetailsJustification
Fragment of a robeHegira 427–87 / AD 1036–94Fatimid; reign of Al-Mustansir billahMuseum of Islamic Art at the Pergamon Museum
Berlin, Germany
Fragment of a tiraz textile datable to the reign of Caliph al-Mustansir (r. 427–86 / 1036–94).
Frescoed architectural fragment from a bathhouseHegira 5th century / AD 11th centuryFatimidMuseum of Islamic Art
Cairo, Egypt
A seated reveller wearing typical Fatimid dress. The bands around his upper arms may be tiraz panels.
Rectangular piece of woodHegira 5th century / AD 11th centuryFatimidMuseum of Islamic Art
Cairo, Egypt
At court, guests would turn out in precious costumes, often sporting tiraz garments that had been bestowed on them as gifts.
The 'Lady of Sabra' plateHegira, second half of the 4th century / AD 10th centuryFatimidMuseum of Islamic Art
Raqqada, Kairouan, Tunisia
A female dancer who appears to be wearing a dress with frills and embroidered panels.
Human headHegira, mid-4th–mid-5th centuries / AD 10th–11th centuriesFatimid–ZiridMuseum of Islamic Art
Raqqada, Kairouan, Tunisia
Rare sculptural fragments such as this one from Tunisia can tell us about contemporary costume – here, a specific type of turban.