Handkerchief in neo-Mamluk style

Unknown artist

The calligraphic text on the cloth is the basmala, the formula 'In the name of God, the Merciful, the Erbarmer' (bismillah ar-rahman ar-rahiem).This cloth was a diplomatic gift and was never used, but cloths with such a shape and inscription were used to cover the mihrab (prayer niche) in the mosque (Bowker 2014: 73).