Where did this go?
This textile originated in the Eastern Mediterranean region in the 7th-9th century. It is very likely that the textile was transported around the Mediterranean during the Crusades from the late 11th century to the late 13th century. With the textile possibly representing Samson, an Old Testament figure, and definitely representing strength and domination, it could have been kept in holy places like churches, temples, or mosques, or in the homes, castles, or palaces of the wealthy or rulers.
Most recently, Holy Cross (in Worcester, Massachusetts) borrowed the textile from Dumbarton Oaks, a museum in Washington D.C. Dumbarton Oaks acquired it in 1940 as a gift from Robert Woods and Mildred Barnes Bliss, who purchased it from Giorgio Sangiorgi, an art collector from Rome, who acquired it from the Cathedral of Chur in Switzerland between 1924 and 1927.