Riding Coat, Iran, first half 13th century. Silk; weft-faced compound twill (samite). Textile: H. 68 7/8 in. (175 cm) W. across sleeves: 50 3/8 in. (128 cm) W. across skirt: 37 in. (94 cm). Purchase, Director's Fund and Oscar de la Renta Ltd. Gift, 2008, 2008.346a–c © 2000–2017 The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

In addition to gold jewelry, affluent people during the Seljuq period and slightly later wore sumptuous silk robes. This coat is identified as a riding coat because of its cut, featuring a flare at the hip. The closing of the robe on the right may reflect a conscious choice by a Persian not to emulate the Turkish style of fastening on the left. The bird, lion, and vegetal motifs all would have had positive symbolic connotations.