Byssus with embroidery, or embroidery with byssus?

In antiquity, byssus was thought to be a fibre, which was used to manufacture very exclusive, lightweight fabric. As with so many things which fall into disuse, the origins of this material became somewhat of a mystery. The dictionaries consulted regarding the meaning of the word byssus state that i...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal for semitics
Main Author: Smith, Anne Marie (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Unisa Press 2018
In: Journal for semitics
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Byssus / Linen / tau (Letter) / Nave / Phoenicia / Bible. Ezechiel 27,1-11
B Classical antiquity / Linen / Embellishment (Music)
IxTheo Classification:BC Ancient Orient; religion
Further subjects:B Embroidery
B Phoenician sails
B Linen
B Byssus
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Summary:In antiquity, byssus was thought to be a fibre, which was used to manufacture very exclusive, lightweight fabric. As with so many things which fall into disuse, the origins of this material became somewhat of a mystery. The dictionaries consulted regarding the meaning of the word byssus state that it was probably a very fine type of linen. As a result of this, I.M.Diakonoff, in his in-depth article “The Naval Power and Trade of Tyre” refers to the sails of the Phoenician ships in Ezekiel 27:7 as made of “byssus with embroidery”. In this article, the real source of byssus is investigated to come to a better understanding of what it was and whether it could possibly have served as material for sails on Phoenician ships.
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal for semitics
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.25159/1013-8471/4054
HDL: 10520/EJC-12280b3a9b