From 13rd Century To 14th Century
The ornamented headdress, arms, and rich vestments of this figure suggests that figures like this one most likely represent a sovereign's personal guard, viziers or amirs.
Probably meant to decorate the reception hall of a ruler's court, be it the Seljuk sultan or one of his local vassals or successors, they would parallel and enhance actual ceremonies in the very setting in which they took place.
Recent analyses have proven that a traditionally-made gypsum plaster is consistently employed on these figures and on archaeological stuccoes.
The figures also display integrated restoration of the first half of the twentieth century, including additions in a more refined gypsum, and modern pigments (some of the reds and synthetic ultramarine blue).
Candlestick with Enthronement Scene
This sophisticated candlestick illustrates various scenes celebrating the sovereign's power over both earth and cosmos.
Images of the planets appear alongside scenes of him slaying a lion and enjoying a royal feast.
His authority becomes most evident in the enthronement scene.
Here, a bearded figure bends to kiss the ruler's right hand, alluding to the obligation of kissing the sovereign's hand or the floor before him
Textile Fragment from the Chasuble of San Valerius
This brocaded textile belongs to a collection of vestments attributed to the cult of Saint Valerius, who was the bishop of Saragossa, Spain, from 290 until 315.
During the eleventh century his body was transferred to the Cathedral of San Vicente de Roda de Isábena in Huesca (Aragon), from where relics were dispatched to other churches.
The textiles were made to venerate the saint, with the chasuble worn on the occasion of his feast day.