This unique collection of historical clothing will be displayed for the first time at the Louvre Museum in Paris on Thursday.
The project, led by archaeologists from the University of Warsaw and designers from the SWPS University in the Polish capital, painstakingly recreated five sets of Nubian garments using murals from the Faras Cathedral as their primary source of inspiration.
These murals are now housed at the National Museum in Warsaw and the Sudan National Museum in Khartoum.
The reconstructed garments will be presented as part of the Louvre's ongoing program, Midis de l’archéologie, with the exhibition scheduled to start at 12:30 p.m. on October 17.
Before the official unveiling, a special session will be held on Tuesday at the Sorbonne University in Paris.
A glimpse into Nubia’s royal and ecclesiastical past
The city of Faras was once the capital of the medieval Nubian kingdom of Nobadia, and later the northern province of the united Kingdom of Makuria, which spanned southern Egypt and northern Sudan from the 6th to the 14th centuries.
The kingdom, part of the historical region known as Nubia, maintained close ties to the Byzantine Empire and adopted Christianity from Constantinople in the 6th century.
This influence is clearly reflected in the royal and ecclesiastical attire depicted in the Faras murals.
Prof. Kazimierz Michałowski from the University of Warsaw initiated Polish research in Nubia during the 1960s, leading to the discovery of the Faras Cathedral and its stunning murals.
These discoveries laid the foundation for continued studies on medieval Nubian art and culture, and today, the National Museum in Warsaw hosts a world-renowned exhibition dedicated to this period in its Faras Gallery.
Monumental depictions of Nubian royalty and clergy adorned the walls of their churches, serving both to inspire the faithful and to symbolize the divine legitimacy of the rulers.
Much like today, clothing and adornments in Nubian society were integral to communication, with each element carrying significant meaning.
Reconstructing history through art
Recreating the lost garments of medieval Nubia posed significant challenges, as few textile remains from the period have survived.
“We have almost no fully preserved garments from Nubia," said Dobrochna Zielińska from the University of Warsaw. "Only a bishop’s tunic and trousers have survived, but most of what we find are fragments, as textiles rarely survive in archaeological conditions."
With little written documentation available, the research team relied heavily on the iconography from the Faras murals.
The project, entitled Creations of Power: Images of the Royal Family and Clergy in Medieval Nubia, was funded by the Polonez BIS program of Poland's National Science Centre and led by Zielińska, together with Karel Innemée and Magdalena Woźniak-Eusèbe.
The team focused on recreating two royal and two queen mother outfits from the 10th and late 12th centuries. According to Dr. Zielińska, these garments reflect the profound influence of Christianity on Nubian culture, which arrived from Constantinople in the 6th century.
“We believe that the Kingdom of Makuria aspired to join the Christian world, and this ambition is visible in their attire. Especially during the early stages of Christianization, royal garments closely mirrored those of Byzantine emperors,” she added.
(jh/gs)
Source: PAP