Oriental Rugs, Antique and Modern
by W. A. Hawley · English · Gutenberg #39740 · 796,662 chars · public domain (US)
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Title: Oriental Rugs, Antique and Modern
Author: W. A. Hawley
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[Illustration: _COLOUR PLATE I_
_Section of the Holy Carpet of the Mosque of Ardebil, in the Royal
Victoria and Albert Museum, South Kensington, London. Described on Pages
83 and 84._]
SECTION OF THE HOLY CARPET OF THE MOSQUE AT ARDEBIL, Size: 34 ft. 6 in.
by 17 ft. 6 in.
TRANSLATION OF INSCRIPTION.
I have no refuge in the world other than thy threshold,
My head has no protection other than this porchway;
The work of the Slave of this Holy Place.
Maksoud of Kashan.
946 A. H. = 1540 A. D.
FORMERLY IN THE POSSESSION OF VINCENT ROBINSON & CO., LTD., 34 WIGMORE
STREET, LONDON, W.,
And Sold by them in 1892 to THE ROYAL VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM, SOUTH
KENSINGTON, LONDON.
ORIENTAL RUGS
ANTIQUE AND MODERN
BY
WALTER A. HAWLEY
_WITH ELEVEN FULL-PAGE PLATES IN COLOUR
EIGHTY HALF-TONE ENGRAVINGS
AND FOUR MAPS_
NEW YORK
DODD, MEAD AND COMPANY
1927
COPYRIGHT, 1913 BY JOHN LANE COMPANY
Printed in U. S. A.
PREFACE
SINCE the appearance, in 1900, of the excellent work of Mr. John
Kimberly Mumford on Oriental Rugs, the public interest in these fabrics
has so largely increased that the author feels warranted in offering
this monograph, which aims to treat the subject in a way that will not
only appeal to the general reader but be of value to the student.
In the chapter entitled “Rug Weaving Before the XVIII Century” is a
brief review of some of the notable achievements in this branch of art;
and in order that the public may as far as possible have access to the
masterpieces described, the carpets on exhibition in the Metropolitan
Museum of Art in New York have been given unusual prominence. The
chapters on “How to Distinguish Rugs” and on “Purchasing Rugs” should
prove serviceable to those who are collecting or are buying for use; and
the chapter on “Weaving” contains many details which have not previously
received from connoisseurs the consideration they deserve.
The descriptions of all but the least important classes of rugs in the
Persian, Asia Minor, Caucasian, and Central Asiatic groups include not
only a general statement of their most striking features, but also a
technical analysis that is termed “Type Characteristics.” It should be
understood, however, that these characteristics are not invariable, but
are remarkably constant. They may interest chiefly those who aim to
acquire expert information, yet they will doubtlessly prove valuable to
every owner of a rug as a means for its identification.
It would be difficult to acknowledge all the assistance received by the
author since he began the study of rugs; for sometimes a mere suggestion
has started a line of investigation resulting in interesting
discoveries. He has freely consulted well-known authorities, who are
quoted in the body of the work; and has received valuable suggestions
and assistance from Messrs. T. S. Hawley, of Santa Barbara, Cal., George
Harootunian and Frank Loftus, of Los Angeles, Cal.; George Stevenson,
of New York; G. Graf, of the Persische Teppiche Gesellschaft, of Tabriz;
and P. de Andrea & Co., of Constantinople. He gratefully acknowledges
the permission of Messrs. C. F. Williams, of Norristown, Penn., and
James F. Ballard, of St. Louis, Mo., to study their valuable
collections; and the permission of Dr. Wilhelm R. Valentiner, Curator of
Decorative Arts in the Metropolitan Museum in New York, to examine the
carpets of the museum and to take photographs of them. He also wishes
particularly to mention the kindness of the following collectors and
firms who have allowed their rugs to be used for illustrations: Miss
Emily Davis, of Buffalo, N. Y.; the Misses Palache, and Messrs. Nathan
Bentz and T. S. Hawley, of Santa Barbara, Cal.; Mr. R. Y. Struble, of
Fredericktown, Ohio; Mr. E. L. Pierce, of Syracuse, N.Y.; Mr. H. C.
Merritt, of Pasadena, Cal.; Mr. J. F. Ballard, of St. Louis, Mo.; Mr. C.
F. Williams, of Norristown, Penn.; Major L. B. Lawton, U.S.A., of Seneca
Falls, N.Y.; Messrs. Mihran & Co., of Los Angeles, Cal.; Messrs. B.
Altman & Co., Benguiat & Keresey, Wm. Baumgarten & Co., Jones &
Brindisi, Jos. Wild & Co., W. & J. Sloane, and the Tiffany Studios, of
New York City. He is also indebted to Vincent Robinson & Co., Ltd., of
London, for the use of the colour plate of the Royal Garden Carpet, now
owned by them, and to the Royal Victoria and Albert Museum, South
Kensington, London, for permission to obtain a colour plate of the Holy
Carpet of the Mosque of Ardebil.
WALTER A. HAWLEY.
NEW YORK, June, 1913.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE
I INTRODUCTION 15
II PHYSICAL FEATURES AND HISTORY OF RUG-PRODUCING
LANDS 20
III MATERIALS 30
IV DYEING 37
V WEAVING 44
VI DESIGNS AND SYMBOLS 58
VII RUG WEAVING BEFORE THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 74
VIII CLASSIFICATION OF MODERN RUGS 97
IX PERSIAN RUGS 102
X ASIA MINOR RUGS 163
XI CAUCASIAN RUGS 197
XII CENTRAL ASIATIC RUGS 233
XIII INDIAN RUGS 253
XIV CHINESE RUGS 263
XV KILIMS 276
XVI HOW TO DISTINGUISH RUGS 282
XVII PURCHASING RUGS 295
INDEX 309
ILLUSTRATIONS
COLOURED PLATES
PLATE
I The Holy Carpet of the Mosque of Ardebil _Frontispiece_
OPPOSITE PAGE
II Oushak Carpet 40
III Mosul Rug 66
IV Bergamo Rug 102
V Ghiordes Prayer Rug 130
VI Royal Persian Garden Carpet _Between pages 160 and 161_
VII Ladik Prayer Rug 190
VIII Soumak Rug 210
IX Samarkand Rug 240
X Kang-hi Rug 270
XI Keen-lung Rug 300
HALF-TONE ENGRAVINGS
Plate 1 Khorassan Rug 22
” 2 Meshed Rug 26
” 3 Kirman Rug 30
” 4 Shiraz Rug 34
” 5 Niris Rug 36
” 6 Feraghan Rug 42
” 7 Feraghan Rug 46
” 8 Hamadan Rug 52
” 9 Sarouk Rug 56
” 10 Sarabend Rug 58
” 11 Carpet from Northwestern Persia 64
” 12 Carpet from Northwestern Persia 68
” 13 Compartment Carpet 70
” 14 Persian Animal Carpet 72
” 15 Persian Animal Carpet 76
” 16 Persian Animal Carpet 78
” 17 So-called Polish or Polonaise Carpet 80
” 18 So-called Ispahan 84
” 19 Armenian Carpet 86
” 20 Asia Minor Dragon and Phœnix Carpet 88
” 21 Portrait of Georg Gyze by Hans Holbein 92
” 22 Oushak Carpet 94
” 23 Sehna Rug 98
Map of Persia 104
” 24 Bijar Rug 106
” 25 Kermanshah Rug 110
” 26 Kurdistan Rug with Mina Khani Pattern 114
” 27 Gorevan Rug 118
” 28 Bergamo Prayer Rug 122
” 29 Ghiordes Prayer Rug 126
” 30 Ghiordes Rug 132
” 31 Kulah Prayer Rug 136
” 32 Melez Prayer Rug 140
” 33 Melez Rug 144
” 34 Rhodian Rug 148
” 35 Konieh Prayer Rug 152
” 36 Kir-Shehr Prayer Rug 154
” E Primary Border-Stripes of Persian Rugs 156
” F Secondary Border-Stripes of Persian Rugs 158
Map of Asia Minor 164
” 37 Anatolian Prayer Rug 166
” 38 Mudjar Prayer Rug 168
” 39 Daghestan Prayer Rug 172
” 40 Kabistan Rug 176
” 41 Kuba Rug 180
” 42 Chichi Rug 184
” 43 Tcherkess Rug 188
” G Primary Border-Stripes of Asia Minor Rugs 192
” H Secondary Border-Stripes of Asia Minor Rugs 194
Map of Caucasia 198
” 44 Baku Rug 200
” 45 Shirvan Rug 202
” 46 Soumak Rug 204
” 47 Kazak Prayer Rug 208
” 48 Kazak Rug 212
” 49 Karabagh Prayer Rug 214
” 50 Gengha Prayer Rug 218
” 51 Royal Bokhara Rug 222
” 52 Princess Bokhara Rug 224
” I Primary Border-Stripes of Caucasian Rugs 226
” J Primary Border-Stripes of Caucasian Rugs 228
” K Secondary Border-Stripes of Caucasian Rugs 230
Map of Turkestan 234
” 53 Turkoman Rug with Katchli Pattern 236
” 54 Turkoman Rug with Pindé Pattern 238
” 55 Turkoman Rug of the Salor Tribes 244
” 56 Yomud Rug 248
” L Primary and Secondary Border-Stripes of Central
Asiatic Rugs 250
” 57 Beshire Prayer Rug 254
” 58 Beshire Rug 258
” 59 Afghan Rug 260
” 60 Beluchistan Prayer Rug 264
” 61 Turkoman Saddle-bags 268
” M Medallions in Chinese Rugs 272
” N Primary and Secondary Border-Stripes of
Chinese Rugs. 274
” 62 Srinagar Rug 278
” 63 XVIII Century Chinese Rug 282
” 64 Keen-lung Rug 286
” 65 Keen-lung Rug 292
” 66 Kurdish Prayer Kilim 296
BLACK AND WHITE ENGRAVINGS
Plate A An Upright Loom 45
” B Technicalities of Weaving 49
” C Prayer Arches of Persian, Caucasian, and Centra
Asiatic Rugs 61
” D Prayer Arches of Asia Minor Rugs 63
” O General Designs 291
CHARTS
Periods when Antique Carpets were made 96
Technicalities in the weave of Persian Rugs 161
Technicalities in the weave of Persian Rugs 162
Technicalities in the weave of Asia Minor Rugs 196
Technicalities in the weave of Caucasian Rugs 232
Technicalities in the weave of Central Asiatic Rugs 252
ORIENTAL RUGS
ANTIQUE AND MODERN
ORIENTAL RUGS
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
IT is not altogether surprising that in a most materialistic age many of
a race distinguished more for its utilitarian than artistic
accomplishments should fail to see in Oriental carpets high artistic
expression; yet during the last twenty years choice specimens have been
sold for sums which not only are very large, but show a tendency to
increase with each succeeding year. In 1893 a woollen rug, known as the
Ardebil carpet and regarded, on account of its beautiful designs and
exquisite colours, as one of the finest products of Oriental art, was
purchased for the South Kensington Museum. Since it had a length of
thirty-four and a half feet with a breadth of seventeen and a half, the
price of £2500, which was the sum paid, was at the rate of twenty
dollars per square foot. At an auction sale in New York in 1910,[1] a
woollen rug five and a half feet long by three and three quarters wide
was sold for the sum of $10,200, or at the rate of four hundred and
ninety-one dollars per square foot; and a silk rug seven feet and two
inches long by six feet and four inches wide was sold for the sum of
$35,500, or at the rate of nine hundred and thirty dollars per square
foot. As it was the general opinion of connoisseurs that the prices paid
for these two rugs were low, and as it is well known that these rugs are
not more valuable than some others of equal size, it is not unreasonable
to assume that many of the best judges of Oriental rugs would declare
that at the present time the sum of five hundred dollars per square foot
is a fair price for some antique woollen rugs, and the sum of one
thousand dollars per square foot a fair price for some antique silk
rugs.
If these judges were asked on what they based their opinion of the value
of these old pieces, which are less serviceable for wear than new rugs
that can be bought of an American factory at twenty cents per square
foot, they might with reason reply that they are works of art, woven in
those days when Michelangelo, Titian, Rubens, and Rembrandt were busy in
their studios; that they are as scarce as the paintings of these
masters; and that they might justly be compared with them in beauty and
artistic execution. Though granting that the technique of weaving makes
it impossible to represent a design as perfectly as can be done with a
brush, they would claim that the drawing of dainty vines, scrolls, and
arabesques was often represented by lines that in abstract beauty of
form are unsurpassed, and that no artist had ever produced from his
palette colours which equalled in brilliant sheen and marvellously
changing hue those of the woven masterpieces.
Whoever is inclined to disagree with these judges and with those art
critics of Europe and America who assert that in an aesthetic sense the
people of the Orient are cultured to a standard beyond the comprehension
of the Western world, should remember that the taste for any kind of art
is based on convention and is largely a matter of cultivation. The
Occidental, who for generations has cultivated the taste for paintings
and statuary, looks to the painter and sculptor for the highest
expression of artistic genius; but the Oriental takes greater delight in
his marvellous creations of porcelain or woven fabrics. There is, too, a
marked difference in treatment. The Occidental demands that in art
“everything should be stated with the utmost fullness of a tedious
realism before he can grasp its meaning”[2] and fails to recognise the
more subtle beauty of various forms of Oriental art. The Oriental, on
the other hand, is far less realistic and is better satisfied if his
subject suggests abstract qualities that depend for their fullest
appreciation on those quickening experiences that at different times
have touched the soul of the observer. Moreover, as Buddhism, which
prevails in many of the countries of Asia, teaches that a universal
spirit is manifested in each form of nature, determining its character,
and a similar idea pervades other religions of the East, the highest aim
of Asiatic art is to express that inner spirit. It is largely this
difference in artistic cultivation that accounts for the difference in
taste. Whoever then would fully appreciate these rugs must view them
not only with an eye trained to see the beautiful harmonies of colour
and design, but with the artistic temperament of the Oriental.
By study and cultivation the European as well as the American is growing
to value more highly the products of Oriental art. When the old sea
captains carried on trade with Japan, they imported into Europe large
quantities of Imari ware, which the Japanese purposely decorated with
crude and vulgar colours to meet the less refined taste of the
Europeans, who regarded many of them as fine specimens of ceramic art
and studiously copied them in their factories. But so great has been the
change in artistic taste since then that now they are valued principally
as objects of curiosity. Likewise, many beautiful Japanese Makimonos, in
which a few strong lines gave but a hint of the essential thought,
formerly passed before the eyes of Europeans as the paintings of
semi-barbarians. But now we begin to see, as did Whistler, that they are
often the products of great genius and that they express thought and
feeling with marvellous power. There has been a similar growth in the
appreciation of Oriental rugs. Even within the last generation this
growth has been apparent, so that the few who wisely bought those old
worn pieces which thirty years ago hung at doors of little shops where
dark-faced foreigners invited acquaintance, are now the envy of the many
who, too late, have learned that to-day they can scarcely be bought at
any price.
The more we study the several fields of art in the Orient, the better we
realise the wonderful creative genius of its people and learn to value
the products of any one field. Japan has awakened the admiration of the
highest art critics for its bronzes, some of which exceed in size any
other castings in the world, and for its netsukés, which are the
smallest of carvings. Its blades of steel are superior to those of
Damascus and Toledo; and its lacquer, which is the most wonderful of its
artistic products, displays genius of a very high order. To China, a
country that we often regard as barbarous, we owe the invention of
silks, the printing press, and gunpowder; yet it is in porcelain, that
was manufactured even in those days when Caesar was marching with his
legions against the barbarous races of Central and Northern Europe, that
China has surpassed the world and set a standard that probably will
never again be reached. In the land where glide the Indus and the Ganges
stand temples, erected by the descendants of the house of Tamerlane,
before which the beholder, even if familiar with the wonders of St.
Peter’s, is lost in admiration of the intricate delicacy of detail, the
majesty of proportions, and the gorgeous splendour of colour with which
some of the spirit of the East is expressed in material form. When we
realise that in these different lines of artistic effort the genius of
Asia has rivalled and surpassed that of Europe and America, we become
the better prepared to believe that choice specimens of woven fabrics,
in weaving which every class of every country of Asia has been engaged
from time immemorial, are to be regarded as works of the highest art.
However pleasing the design or elaborate the detail, it is principally
in the colouring that these rugs claim our interest and admiration. The
colours which are derived from vegetable or animal dyes grow more mellow
and beautiful with passing years, and applied to wools of finest texture
acquire a lustre and softness which in the choicest specimens are like
the radiant throat of a humming bird, or tints at the close of an autumn
day. The different shades have different moods, expressing peace, joy,
pensiveness, sorrow, the deep meaning of which the Oriental mind with
its subtle and serious imagination has grasped as has none other.
Moreover, in all truly fine pieces there is perfect harmony of tone. It
is in this richness, suggestiveness, and harmony that the greatest
artistic value lies.
That all do not appreciate these qualities is not because they do not
exist; for the keen perception of colour, like the keen perception of
music, is a faculty granted to one person but denied to another. Even to
those who take delight in colour there are different degrees of
appreciation. “The fact is,” said John Ruskin, “we none of us enough
appreciate the nobleness and sacredness of colour.” But as the ear can
be cultivated to a higher taste for music, so can the eye be cultivated
to a higher taste for colour; and to fully appreciate the beauties of
Oriental rugs it is necessary to develop this faculty to its fullest
extent.
And yet it is not alone as works of art that Oriental rugs interest us.
They suggest something of the life and religious thought of the people
who made them. Some seem redolent with the fragrance of flowers, others
reflect the spirit of desert wastes and wind-swept steppes. So, too, in
the colours and designs of some appear the symbols of that mysticism
with which the minds of the followers of Zoroaster in their effort to
commune with the unseen forces of the universe were imbued; and though
the original meaning of many of these symbols has been forgotten, the
study of others leads to a better understanding of the life-thought of
the weavers.
Realising, then, that Asia has been the cradle from which has come the
highest expression of many forms of artistic achievement, and that the
Western mind is now assigning to its woven fabrics their proper place in
the galleries of art, we may begin the study of Oriental rugs with the
assurance that the further it is pursued the greater will be the
appreciation and delight. It will take us among strange and interesting
people, and over fields that were historic grounds before the walls of
Rome were built. It will lead beyond the dome of St. Sophia to the land
of the Arabian tales, where the splendour of former days is reflected in
tomb and mosque, and where, perhaps, when the Western world grows old,
there will rise again from crumbling ruins another nation that will
revive the poetic and artistic genius of the East with all the majesty
and creative power of the past.
CHAPTER II
PHYSICAL FEATURES AND HISTORY OF THE RUG-PRODUCING LANDS
THE artistic character of Oriental rugs, like every other artistic
impulse, is subject to the influence of physical environment. This
influence is not alone that to which an individual weaver has been
subjected, but is the transmitted effect of the accumulated experiences
of many generations. It appears in the colours which simulate tones
displayed by varying phases of nature, and also in the designs or
symbols which, derived from older types by a long process of evolution,
partially reflect feelings engendered in a people of highly imaginative
and poetic temperament by long contact with elemental forces. Moreover,
the quality of material used depends almost exclusively on the climate
and physical conditions of countries where it is produced. Accordingly,
the artistic and essential characteristics of rugs are better understood
by a knowledge of the salient physical features of the countries where
they are woven.[3]
The principal Oriental countries that continue to produce rugs are
China, India, Afghanistan, Beluchistan, Persia, Turkestan, Caucasia, and
Asia Minor. As all of them are contiguous, they may be regarded as a
geographic unit; and though there is much diversity of detail, there is
also much in common. From near the western boundary of Asia Minor a vast
plateau stretches eastward into Central Asia, increasing in altitude
towards the east.
Its mean elevation in Asia Minor is from two thousand to three thousand
feet, and as it extends beyond the Zagros Mountains and crosses the
northern half of Persia, it rises from four thousand to five thousand
feet. Continuing eastward through Southern Turkestan and Afghanistan it
increases in altitude until it has risen to nearly twelve thousand feet
in the lofty table-lands of Central Asia, where it begins to descend as
it extends farther into the desert of Gobi. From the western part of
this plateau a spur extends northward between the Black and Caspian
seas, to form the high table-land of Caucasia, which has a mean elevation
of about seven thousand feet.
The general topographic features of this plateau include great stretches
of comparatively level land, broad tracts from which there is no
drainage to the sea, and sandy desert wastes. On almost every side it is
bounded by mountain chains and is intersected by transverse ridges that
lift still higher peaks where rests the perpetual snow. Throughout the
deserts and large parts of the table-lands the rainfall is slight, so
that there are but few important river courses.
The cultivated portions of this vast area are relatively small, and
consist largely of strips of land in fertile valleys, through which flow
perennial streams. From time immemorial these streams have been used for
irrigation, and the inhabitants of the districts have prospered by
abundant harvests. In one or another of these valleys have been built
the principal cities, within the walls of which were imposing temples
that stimulated religious fervour, schools of learning to quicken the
intellect, and gardens where perfumed flowers and the songs of birds
delighted the aesthetic senses. In these cities science, philosophy,
religion, and art received their highest development. In them lived the
most skilled artisans and artists of the Orient; and the products of the
loom were of the finest quality.
Beyond these valleys are great stretches of uncultivated tracts
consisting of plains, hills, and mountains. Some of these tracts are
naturally fertile and could be made productive, but at present are used
only for pasturage, and over them numberless tribes of fierce nomads
drive their flocks of sheep. On the other hand, where the land has no
drainage to the sea, so that the streams and rivers that flow into it
empty into small lakes or are finally absorbed, the soil becomes
impregnated with alkali deposited from the waters, and the grass is
scanty. There are also sandy wastes of great extent where scarcely any
animal life can exist. Moreover in many parts of the country the rain
falls only during a few months of the year, and more abundantly in the
higher altitudes, so that the nomads are constantly searching for fresh
pasturage, and moving from the lowlands, where the grass dies after the
rainy season, to the higher altitudes, from which they return again at
the approach of winter. So numerous are the flocks that in the struggle
for pasture the weaker tribes are driven to the poorer land.
The pastoral life, the necessity of moving from place to place, the
strife resulting from the difference in quality of pasture, have
affected the temperament and character of the people. The boundless
stretches of land, the clear atmosphere, the burning desert sands, the
delicate mirage, and the starry heavens, have made men hospitable,
thoughtful, devotional; constant wanderings have made them independent;
the struggle for pasturage has made them lawless and cruel. These
qualities are reflected to some extent in their woven fabrics, which
lack the high artistic finish of those woven in cities. A large
proportion of them are prayer rugs and contain symbols of the sun and
fire worship. The designs are barbaric, and many are doubtless the same
as those used hundreds of years ago. The colours of the old pieces,
woven on upland plains or in mountain fastnesses, blend less
harmoniously than those woven by more cultured weavers; but they
frequently possess rich, pure tones, which are no longer seen in the
modern rugs. As even a partial expression of the thoughts and feelings
of a people, there are no rugs from the Orient more worthy of study than
the rare old pieces woven by nomadic tribes.
Not only physical environment but the conquests of foreign enemies, as
well as political struggles at home, have had an important influence on
all art. It will be of interest, therefore, to briefly review the
histories of Central and Southwestern Asia, where rugs have been made
for over three thousand years, in order to understand the different
racial influences which have affected their artistic development.
[Illustration: PLATE 1. KHORASSAN RUG]
In the rich valleys near the mouths of the Tigris and Euphrates dwelt in
the remote past a race of unknown origin called Sumerians, and to the
north of them lived another people known as the Accadians. These races
built canals, cultivated the soil, established towns, and invented the
cuneiform writing. They lived in harmony with one another, and
continued to prosper until about 3000 B.C., when the Semitic race of the
Chaldees, appearing from an unknown land, subdued them. The Chaldees,
however, allowed the conquered races to retain part of their lands,
adopted their civilisation, and about the year 2500 B.C. built the city
of Babylon, the foundation of which biblical students claim was laid by
the mighty hunter Nimrod. By cultivating the surrounding country, by
developing its trade and commerce, the Babylonians became a wealthy and
powerful nation; and by encouraging manufactures, art, and science, they
became noted for their delicate fabrics, magnificent temples, and
knowledge of mathematics and astronomy.
About the year 2000 B.C. a number of tribesmen, among whom was Abraham,
migrated with their flocks to the upper valleys of the Tigris and
founded Nineveh. A century later the land occupied by colonists who
settled about Nineveh was known as Assyria. It increased in numbers and
in power until, in 1300 B.C., it gained its first victory over Babylon;
and during the next four hundred years, though meeting with occasional
reverses, it extended its rule over Babylonia, Asia Minor, and Assyria,
and received tribute even from Egypt. It thus became the first great
conquering power in Southwestern Asia. In their magnificent palaces of
Nineveh, surrounded by luxury, the rulers of Assyria were resting in
supposed security when a powerful and unexpected enemy appeared from the
land now known as Persia.
When the valleys of the Tigris and the Euphrates were inhabited by
Sumerians and Accadians, Iran, which included modern Persia, was
similarly inhabited by races of unknown origin. Subsequently, but at an
exceedingly remote period, from the region about the Oxus river in
Western Asia two branches of the great Aryan family migrated to Iran.
One of these, which settled in the northern part, was known as the
Medes; the other, which settled in the southern part, was known as the
Persians. Both Medes and Persians subdued the native races and in the
course of centuries constructed powerful empires. The former were the
first to extend their conquests, and forming an alliance with the
viceroy of Babylon they attacked Nineveh in the year 606 B.C. and
destroyed it. Babylon now became the mistress of all Mesopotamia, and
under Nebuchadnezzar it was enlarged to cover an area of one hundred
square miles, and surrounded by walls three hundred feet high. These
walls enclosed parks, orchards, gardens, and a city that soon became
famous for its palaces, its temple of Bel, and its Hanging Gardens.
While Babylon was rising in power changes were occurring in Iran. Cyrus,
leader of the Persians, instigated a revolt against the Medes and
conquered them. But not satisfied with making the Persians rulers of
Iran he extended his conquests westward, and in the year 538 B.C., by
diverting the waters of the Euphrates, surprised Belshazzar in his
banquet hall and became master of Babylonia. The complete subjection of
all Asia Minor followed, and for the next two centuries the warlike
Persians were the dominant power in Western Asia. But in the year 331
B.C., when Alexander the Great defeated their armies under Darius, the
Persian Empire melted away.
Whether in Egypt or China or by the Tigris the art of weaving first took
definite form, it was in this land of Babylon and Nineveh, of the Medes
and the Persians, of Abraham, Belshazzar, and Cyrus, where a few
remaining monuments attest the delicate textiles of those early days,
that in more recent ages have been woven the most perfect carpets of
which there is any knowledge.
During the succeeding five hundred years Persia, Asia Minor, Caucasia,
and Syria became the prey of the Parthians, Greeks, and Romans, to whom
petty tribes, recognising no sovereign power and secure in their
mountain fastnesses, bade occasional defiance. About the year 226 A. D.
an able leader of one of the Persian tribes founded the dynasty of the
Sassanides, which during the reign of Chosroes (531-579 A. D.) and his
grandson Chosroes II (590-628 A. D.) ruled over the country from the Oxus
on the north to Arabia and Egypt on the south, and from India on the
east to Assyria on the west. This was a period of prosperity and luxury,
the glory of which continued until the middle of the VII Century, when
it was overthrown by a new power rising from a most unexpected quarter.
In the inhospitable land of Arabia, noted for its coffee, dates, and
myrrh, for its dreary, sandy, waterless wastes, a land hitherto almost
unknown in history, Mohammed promulgated the religion which, suited to
the temperament and desires of the Bedouins, united them into a fanatic,
militant body of conquerors. After his death his successors, known as
the Caliphs, extended his conquests. Their successful armies quickly
overran Persia and overthrew the Sassanian rule; then marching northward
into Turkestan and as far east as the Indus they overcame all
resistance. From the Greeks, by whom they were known as the Saracens,
they snatched Palestine and Syria, and invading Egypt, conquered it
after the long stubborn siege of Alexandria. A little later the Arabs
became masters of Northern Africa, and settling there intermarried with
the native races. Near the Straits of Gibraltar their African
descendants, known as the Moors, crossed to Spain, where in the year 711
they vanquished a powerful army that opposed them. During the following
year they subdued all of that country and began an invasion of Northern
Europe. But on the rich pasture lands near Tours, where the infantry of
Charles Martel met the Mussulman cavalry in one of the most decisive
battles of history, they were defeated with terrible slaughter and
Christian Europe was saved.
These conquests of the Mohammedans had not only a political and
religious significance, but also an important influence on art at a time
when Europe was sunk in ignorance and barbarism. Fond of magnificence
and luxury, the Caliphs founded great capitals in Assyria, Egypt, and
Spain, and built palaces that have histories which sound like fairy
tales. Bagdad on the banks of the Tigris, with its sixteen hundred
canals, one hundred and five bridges, and nearly a million people, with
its countless baths, its many thousand mosques, and its royal palace,
where was collected the best of Asiatic taste, elegance, and splendour,
possessed more grandeur than any other city in the world. Gibbon states
that within the palace, furnished with Oriental luxury, hung
thirty-eight thousand pieces of tapestry, one third of which were of
silk embroidered with gold, and that on the floors lay twenty-two
thousand carpets. In Cairo and in Cordova, likewise, the Caliphs
surrounded themselves with similar splendour, of which, unfortunately,
but few traces now exist; but the Castle of the Alhambra still remains
as a powerful reminder of their taste and artistic genius. It is largely
to the influence of this race that were due many of the beautiful
Spanish rugs such as Queen Eleanor in the XIII Century took to England
from Cordova and Granada, as well as those of other periods. Moreover,
in some of the choicest pieces of Asia Minor and Persia, woven during
the XVI and XVII Centuries, are traces of this early Saracenic art.
For about five centuries the militant power of these Mohammedans was
dominant in Southwestern Asia when another conquering race appeared. The
great wall of China, which was built over two hundred years before
Christ by the famous Che-Hwang-te, to protect it against the invasions
of the Tartars, turned westward many wandering hordes from the more
fertile pastures and valleys of Southeastern Asia. One of these hordes
was of Turks, who, leaving their homes near the sources of the Irtish
and Yenisei rivers in the Altai Mountains, settled in Turkestan. Many
centuries afterwards, to escape from other hordes pressing westward and
to reach fresh pastures, different branches of them migrated southward
and westward. About the year 1000 A. D. one of these branches known as
the Seljukian Turks gained a foothold in Persia, and under Malek Shah,
in 1072, made Ispahan its capital. About the same time it extended its
power over Asia Minor and overran Georgia, where it destroyed the
capital Tiflis after slaughtering the inhabitants. To this Turkoman race
should probably be accredited the earliest Mongolian influence on
Persian textile art.
Somewhat later a people numbering forty thousand tents were ranging that
part of Mongolia which lies north of the desert of Gobi in search of
pasture and water. One of their number gathered about him a few
followers, and by his own genius gained the ascendency over his tribes.
He then allied himself with another powerful tribe, and reducing to
obedience all the Mongolians who dwelt north of the desert of Gobi, in
1206, in the presence of his chiefs, he assumed the title of Genghis
Khan. After becoming the ruler of millions of nomads of the great
central plateau of Asia and conquering part of China, which was then
enjoying a period of great wealth and prosperity, he invaded Western
Asia. Bokhara offered no resistance and might have been spared, but
learning that some of the Sultan’s garrison were concealed he ordered
the city to be burned. Samarkand, which surrendered after three days’
siege, was pillaged and the inhabitants were slaughtered. Herat appeased
his anger by opening its gates. Even his death did not stop the ravages
of the Mongol horde that captured and sacked Bagdad, and, crossing the
Tigris and Euphrates, pillaged all Asia Minor. In 1258, Hulaku Khan,
grandson of Genghis, conquered Persia and established his capital in the
province of Azerbijan, where his descendants ruled for over a century.
[Illustration: PLATE 2. MESHED RUG]
With these invasions another wave of Mongolian influence was felt in
Western Asia. Whatever may have been the effect on local art by the
settlement of the Seljukian Turks in Persia and Asia Minor during the
early part of the XI Century, it was inappreciable as compared with
that of Genghis Khan and his followers. For the influence of Bagdad over
Southwestern Asia was like that of Rome over the empire of the Cæsars,
and when in the middle of the XIII Century it was plundered for forty
days, and other important cities of Asia Minor and Persia similarly
treated, there was no longer the same incentive to work, so that art for
a time languished. But in some cities the artistic spirit of the people
prevailed over the loss of independence, and the more skilled workmen
were encouraged by their new masters, who, recognising the beauty of the
Persian carpets, sent many Persian artists to China and brought many
Chinese artists to Persia, that the different races might derive
advantages from the instruction of one another. It is therefore not
surprising that from this time the influence of Chinese art has been
recognised in the woven fabrics and metal work made in the southwestern
part of Asia. In fact, the Chinese motive known as the “key pattern,” as
well as other less familiar designs of distinctly Mongolian origin,
appeared for the first time in some of the carpets and metal work of
this period.
Like Turkestan, Asia Minor has been one of the great battle-grounds of
the world. During parts of the XI, XII, and XIII Centuries not only
Seljukian Turks, but Mongols and Ottoman Turks under Murad and Bajazet,
rose in influence until all Asia Minor, as well as Thrace and Macedonia,
was subject to them. But still another power from the far East was to
overrun Asia and divert Bajazet from the walls of Constantinople.
Under Tamerlane, the descendant of Genghis Khan, the Mongol hordes were
again united and again attempted the conquest of the world. From the
walls of China to the Mediterranean Sea, and from the Steppes of
Turkestan to the Arabian deserts, his victorious armies overcame all
opposition. Never was conqueror more rapacious, more bloodthirsty. At
Ispahan, seventy thousand inhabitants were slain. Georgia was laid waste
and the people were massacred. In 1401, Bagdad was besieged and, when
taken, a pyramid of ninety thousand human victims was raised as a
monument to the Tartar conqueror. In the following year, when the armies
of Bajazet and Tamerlane met on the plains near Angora, the Turks were
defeated and Bajazet was captured. But now the tide of Mongol invasion
receded; and laden with spoils Tamerlane returned to his capital at
Samarkand, where he enjoyed the remaining years of his life by
surrounding himself with a brilliant court and by building palaces and
temples, which he adorned with royal splendour. With all his atrocious
barbarities he had a higher appreciation of art than his Mongolian
predecessors. At his capital were assembled skilled artisans from
Eastern and Western Asia; and there at the beginning of the XIV Century
European travellers saw innumerable art treasures, including carpets of
wonderful workmanship and beauty.
The Mongol power also gained an important foothold in India. This
country, like Iran, had been subjugated by a branch of the Aryan race,
which conquered the native Dravidians, and remained dominant until the
VII and VIII Centuries. Then the Mohammedans invaded it, and were still
in ascendency when Tamerlane crossed the mountains and attacked Delhi.
After the lapse of more than a hundred years his descendants, Baber,
Akbar, and Shah Jahan, rose to power. The magnificence of their courts
and the splendour of the temples which they built stimulated Indian art;
and under the instruction of Persian artisans, who were induced to
settle in that country, the natives attained their highest skill in
weaving.
With the death of Tamerlane, in 1405, the Ottoman power in Persia and
Asia Minor rose again, and Turkish victories followed in quick
succession until in 1453 Constantinople fell and the church of St.
Sophia became a mosque.
After the lapse of half a century Shah Ismael of the family of the
Safavids defeated the Turkomans in 1502, and founded a new dynasty in
Persia. With his rise began one of the most splendid periods in its
history. Within a few years victories extended his empire from the
Euphrates river to Afghanistan and from the Oxus to the Persian gulf.
This was the land of ancient Iran, over which from his court at Ardebil
he ruled until his death. In the early part of the reign of Shah Tamasp,
which lasted from 1524 to 1576, the new dynasty was threatened by the
Turkish ruler, Soliman the Magnificent, after he had taken Rhodes from
the Knights of St. John and invaded Southern Europe. In 1534 he captured
Bagdad and Tabriz, as well as conquered Shirvan and Georgia.[4] But the
lost territory was soon regained and the new Persian capital was
established at Tabriz where, as will be seen later, were woven many of
the greatest masterpieces of Persian textile fabrics. Much as these
monarchs had accomplished, it was Shah Abbas the Great who, after ten
years of internal strife, succeeded by expelling the Turks from Persia,
restoring tranquillity, and establishing commerce, in elevating his
country from one of devastation and confusion to one of greatness such
as it had not known for many ages. He transferred his court to Ispahan,
where, while adding to the magnificence of the city, he encouraged art
even to the extent of sending to Italy, for study, a number of the most
skilled artists of Persia. These in time returned and exerted an
influence that appeared in the more elaborate designs of carpets of a
subsequent period. It is also probable that he rendered valuable
assistance to Akbar of India in founding carpet-weaving in that country.
He ruled from 1586 to 1628. This period, during which America was a
wilderness and England under Queen Elizabeth was still struggling with
the feudal system, was the golden age of Persian history and Persian
art; but with his death the Safavid dynasty declined and art decadence
began.
In 1722, the Afghans conquered Persia and for a number of years ruled it
with horrible cruelty; but they were finally defeated by Nadir Shah, who
captured Herat in 1731, extended his dominion into Georgia, and
recovered some of the lost territory from the Turkish Empire in the
West. After his death the sovereignty of Persia again waned, until in
time it was confined to its present limits.
It thus appears that from the earliest times recorded in history the
southwestern part of Asia has been subject to invasion, and to constant
struggles between the different races of the East for supremacy. Even
from the desert of Gobi, the flanks of the Altai Mountains, and the
deserts of Arabia have poured forth armies to devastate the land. One
victorious power after another has extended its sway from the banks of
the Indus to the shores of the Mediterranean. The result is that the
present Oriental textile art is of a composite character, which can be
understood only by taking into consideration the value of these racial
influences that have contributed to it some of its most interesting and
subtle charms.
CHAPTER III
THE MATERIALS
AS was the case with the earliest shepherd weavers, many nomads living
in unfrequented parts of Asia spin the wool taken from their own flocks,
then colour it with dyes brewed from roots and herbs that they have
personally gathered, and finally weave it according to well-known
patterns into fabrics. But in large, enlightened communities the
manufacture of an Oriental rug involves a division of labour. From the
shepherds the professional dyers obtain the wool, which, after
colouring, they sell to weavers; and these in turn often receive their
patterns from others. A knowledge of these separate steps involving the
industries of producing the different materials and the crafts of
dyeing, weaving, and designing is essential to a full understanding of
any Oriental woven fabric.
The materials that were formerly used in weaving were generally of
animal origin, such as the wool of sheep, goats, and camels. To a more
limited extent silk and cotton also were used, and occasionally hair of
the yak, cow, and even human hair. In later years, when there arose a
western demand for eastern fabrics so that the aim of the weaver was to
produce an article as cheaply as possible, flax, hemp, jute, and larger
quantities of cotton were sometimes substituted. Since all of these
materials are indigenous to the country where they are used, and are
affected by its climate, altitude, humidity, and fertility, they acquire
qualities that frequently give to rugs a distinctly local character.
[Illustration: PLATE 3. KIRMAN RUG]
The wool of sheep constitutes the warp and weft of at least half the
Oriental rugs and the pile of over ninety per cent. To be sure, in Japan
the pile is largely jute and cotton; in a few of the districts of Asia
Minor and Persia it is mercerised cotton or silk; and in districts where
the camel is still a beast of burden its wool and fine hair are often
substituted for other kinds; but throughout all the rug-weaving
countries of the East the wool of the sheep has been and still is
preferred to all other materials for the pile of rugs. This is due not
alone to its warmth, to the facility with which it can be spun and
twisted into knots, but also to the fact that from the remotest times
the inhabitants of these districts, like Abraham of old, have been
shepherds, who followed their calling because over the steppes of
Tartary and the great plateaus that extend through Asia Minor, Persia,
Afghanistan, and Turkestan spread vast pasture lands that seem better
suited than any other parts of the world for the nourishment of sheep
with fine fleeces. In fact, a part of these districts seems to be the
natural habitat of the sheep; for among the crags of some of the lofty
mountain chains of Central Asia, and farther west where Eastern and
Western Turkestan meet in the lofty plateau of Pamir, called the “Roof
of the World,” still wander great bands of magnificent native sheep with
enormous horns and brownish grey wool, from which it is believed sprang
the vast flocks that now browse on every hill and mountain slope of
Western Asia.
Centuries of care have effected an important evolution in this native
stock, for in no other part of the world are there sheep with longer and
more silky fleeces. Nevertheless there are different grades, as the
quality depends in a measure on the climate and pasturage as well as on
the care of the sheep. Thus in the hot, sandy lands the wool shows some
deterioration; but in the cold, dry climates of the many high lands of
Western Asia and in the pastures of particular localities the wool is
long, fine, and lustrous. For instance, in parts of Khorassan, on the
flanks of high mountains near Kirman and Shiraz, on the shores of Lake
Niris in Farsistan, among the rolling uplands of Asia Minor, are
produced uncommonly fine and beautiful fleeces. When, moreover, the
sheep of these localities receive the care that is given by some of the
nomadic tribes, as the Uzbeck Tartars, who not only shelter them but
cover them with blankets, the wool acquires a soft and silky quality
that is unsurpassed. The wool produced in many parts of India, on the
other hand, is poor; for not only are the serrations, on which largely
depends its value for textile purposes, less numerous than in better
varieties, but it is harsh and contains many long hairs that do not well
unite with it and that take up very little dye.
The wool of the goat is much less extensively used, yet appears in some
rugs, not only as warp and weft, but also as pile. The goats of
Kashmir, which live in the cold climate of a table-land three miles above
the ocean level, produce the finest and most beautiful wool; but as it
grows near the skin, and beneath wiry hairs from which it can be removed
only with tedious care, it is too precious to be used excepting for the
most beautiful shawls and choicest carpets. Of next importance and
finest texture is the wool of the Angora goat, known to commerce as
mohair. Formerly there was not much demand for it, but now, on account
of the consideration that it has received in the carpet factories of
recent Sultans, it is found in many of the rugs of Asia Minor. As it
grows to an average length of five to six inches it is easily spun; and
its soft, lustrous sheen gives to the rugs in which it is used a silky
and brilliant appearance. Some of the Bokhara goats, also, yield fine
wool that is used in rugs. Yet, as a rule, yarn made from the fleece of
the goat is not regarded with favour by weavers, since it is apt to be
coarse and to pack closely. Nor does the wool of the goat mix well with
the wool of the sheep. There is, however, a much finer grade growing
next to the skin, which may be removed with a knife when it is exposed
by combing the longer fleece in a direction reverse to that in which it
lies. The tougher grades are preferred to any other material by weavers
of the Afghanistan, Beluchistan, and some Turkoman rugs for selvages at
the sides, as they afford excellent protection against hard usage.
Goat’s hair is also sometimes used in these rugs for warp. Unless mixed
with wool it is very rarely used for weft, as it is not sufficiently
pliable.
Of more frequent use than the wool of the goat is the wool of the camel
which grows close to the skin beneath the long hair. In the tropical
countries, as in Soudan, the camel has no wool, but in more northern
latitudes it yields a crop which increases in quantity and improves in
quality as the climate grows colder. Thus in Arabia, Asia Minor, and in
most of Persia and Turkestan the yield is small, in the table-lands of
Eastern Persia and Afghanistan it is much larger, and on the lofty
plateaus of Turkestan and Chinese Tartary as much as ten pounds of wool
is obtained yearly from each beast. The clip is taken at the usual
moulting season during the spring of the year. The wool of the older
camels is coarse and dark, what is taken from the young is finer and
lighter, and the most silky and valuable of all is what is obtained from
the unborn. The best grade has been more highly esteemed than the wool
of any other animal, and rugs in which it constitutes the pile are more
valuable than those in which the wool of sheep is used. It is seldom
woven in modern rugs, but dyed wool or goats’ hair of similar colour is
often substituted for it.
The wool or underhair of the yak is used only among the mountain tribes
of Tartary, and is never found in any of the choicer grades of rugs.
Occasionally the hair of the horse or cow is employed to a limited
extent in the pile of nomadic rugs, where it may be distinguished by its
coarse and wiry character. In old rugs of which the pile is much worn
cows’ hair will now and then protrude like the hairs of small bristle
brushes. Only very rarely is human hair seen in a rug.
Natural colours of the several kinds of wool, which have made it
possible to dispense with their dyeing, have always been taken advantage
of by weavers. The only black yarn on which the wear of time has left no
impress is from the fleece of the proverbially despised black sheep.
Shades of white, ivory, brown, grey, rufus, and even a plum are obtained
from different varieties. Likewise a wide range of rich chestnut colours
are furnished by the camel.
It is but natural that the nomad should depend on the wool of his flocks
and herds for warp, weft, and pile; but people of fixed habitations have
employed other kinds of material also. Where the sensuous luxury of the
East called for magnificent carpets, they were often woven almost
entirely of silk, which was easily obtained, as silkworms thrive on the
mulberry trees that grow wild on the plains of Central and Southwestern
Asia. Silk rugs are still woven in a few cities of Asia Minor and
Persia. For the cheaper grades of rugs flax, hemp, and jute have been
sparingly used; and during recent years cotton has been widely adopted,
particularly in Persian, Indian, and Chinese rugs, on account of its
cheapness as compared with wool. It is, however, almost entirely as warp
and weft and rarely as pile that it is used. Though much less durable
than wool, its white colour is far less likely to darken with age; yet
there is a poorer variety which, after being thoroughly wet, acquires a
dark colour.
In the preparation of these different textile materials wool requires
the greatest care. In some parts of the Orient it is not washed, and the
lustrous hues of the pile are attributed to the fact that it is dyed in
its naturally greasy state; but in other parts the grease and dirt are
carefully removed. This cleansing is a craft that has been transmitted
from parent to child, and is practised according to different methods
in different parts of the country. One of the chief essentials is an
abundance of clear running water free from alkali; for when the water is
hard, as is often the case in the more arid parts of the country, it
loses some of its cleansing properties, and potash or other chemicals
are required to counter-act this unfavourable quality. After the wool
has been thoroughly washed it is carefully dried in the sun and open
air.
The next important step is the proper sorting, picking, and combing. The
sorting consists of the separation of black and light wool, or of an
inferior from a better grade; and the picking consists of the removal of
burrs or foreign particles. The object of combing is to effect an
orderly arrangement of the wool so that it is ready for spinning. One
method, corresponding to carding, is to draw the wool repeatedly between
rows of upright spikes set in a wooden frame until every matted particle
has been separated and all the fibres are disentangled. The older
method, still employed in nearly every part of the Orient, consists of
“teasing” with the cord of a heavy bow, which is suspended or held
firmly by the left hand over the wool, while with the right hand the
cord is made to vibrate either by striking it with a wooden instrument
or plucking it, so that the fibres of wool are separated and assorted by
the vibrations.
When the wool has thus been prepared, it is wound about the distaff and
then spun into yarn. In many parts of the Orient the common
spinning-wheel has been introduced and adopted for both wool and cotton;
in other parts are crudely made spinning-wheels of different design and
about the height of a man. The natives of districts more remote from
civilisation still cling to the primeval spindle, which sometimes
consists of no more than a rounded stick half an inch in diameter and a
foot in length with a ball of clay at one end. Many of the nomadic
tribes of Asia Minor and Mesopotamia use in place of it a small stone of
convenient shape, to which is tied a strip of linen a few inches in
length. A few fibres of wool are attached to the end of the linen by
twisting them about it, and a few more fibres are similarly attached to
these when the stone is suspended and twirled. As the fibres become
closely twisted together more fibres are added until on account of the
length of the thread thus formed the stone reaches the ground. The
thread is then wound about the stone and secured by a couple of loops so
as to leave a piece only a few inches in length, to which more wool is
attached in continuing the spinning. When a large ball of thread has
been spun, it is removed from the stone and the process begun again.
[Illustration: PLATE 4. SHIRAZ RUG]
One advantage of these simple devices is that they can easily be carried
anywhere. Even to-day a not unusual sight is a half barbaric shepherd
following his flock, while he spins with simple distaff and spindle or
stone, as did his ancestors thousands of years ago. On the end of the
distaff, that rests beneath his left arm, is the ball of wool from which
he selects and twists the fibres, while he deftly turns the short
spindle or twirls the stone with thumb and forefinger of the right hand.
The threads spun by professional spinners on spinning-wheels are of
small diameter and are the most regular in size and texture, those spun
with the small spindle are of larger diameter and less regular, and
those spun by twirling a stone are made of the coarsest diameter in
order to insure sufficient stoutness, since they are the most irregular
in size and texture; yet yarn so made is the most highly valued by all
weavers.
Only very rarely, indeed, is one of these single threads used for yarn,
since it would be apt to part. Two of them, therefore, are twisted
together to form a double thread. A simple device used by many nomadic
tribes for this purpose consists of two short sticks crossing at right
angles, and another piece with end like a crochet needle perpendicular
to them. The threads which are attached to this piece pass through a
hole at the intersection of the crossed sticks and are twisted by
twirling them. It is very seldom that three single threads are twisted
to make a triple thread, and when such is the case it is the work of a
professional spinner who uses a large spinning-wheel, and never the work
of a nomad. For the weft of many rugs, and for the pile of a few rugs
such as Sarouks and Kashans, a double thread alone is used; whilst for
the pile of most rugs the double thread is again doubled, trebled, or
quadrupled, so as to form yarn of two, three, or four ply, and even yarn
of six ply is sometimes used. A distinction also exists in the manner of
twisting together double threads to make yarn of two or more ply, since
according to the custom of different tribes they may be twisted so
loosely that in the length of an inch they do not describe more than a
single revolution or so tightly as to describe several.
Until the introduction of the modern spinning-wheel wool was spun in the
Orient exactly as it was ages ago. It is this almost incredible
disposition to adhere as with religious fanaticism to methods
transmitted from father to son and to resist as pernicious every
attempt at innovation that makes a precise analysis of rugs possible.
Accordingly, the evenness or unevenness of single threads, the looseness
or tightness with which double threads are twisted together to form yarn
of different ply, as well as the number of the ply used, are a few of
the important indices for distinguishing between rugs of different
districts.
Even after the yarn is spun it is not always ready for the dyer, and in
order that it may properly absorb the dye it is often washed and
rewashed. In some parts of the Orient it is first soaked in warm water
and carefully rinsed in cold water. It is then placed in a copper pot or
vat containing boiling water to which has been added carbonate or
sulphate of soda and potash, and stirred for about an hour. After this
thorough cleansing it is again washed very carefully in soft water and
thoroughly dried in the sun.
The wonderful sheen of many old rugs is due almost entirely to the
materials of which they are made. This material, as a rule, is
unsurpassed by similar products of any other part of the world, and is
prepared by patient races who know little of the value of time. The
simple labour required is in itself prosaic enough, yet without a doubt
the earlier spinners and weavers, while following their flocks with
minds free from all conventions and limitations of art, discerned the
elemental forces of nature in all their freshness and power, and from
them drew inspiration that bore fruit in the exquisite colouring and
delicate tracery of the woven carpets.
[Illustration: PLATE 5. NIRIS RUG]
CHAPTER IV
DYEING
HOWEVER remarkable the achievements of Oriental art in any field, their
most pleasing effect has always been associated with colour. Without it
the beauty of the lustre tiles of Persia, the marvellous porcelains of
China, and the delicate textiles of Western Asia would fade into
insignificance. It is indeed the wonderful harmonies of exquisite tints
chosen by the touch of genius from a palette of many thousand pigments
that awaken the appreciation of the luxurious splendour of the East.
This love for colour is inherent in every rug-producing race of Asia and
is older than history. It is but natural, then, that the earliest
carpets should be radiant with glorious tints, which in a lesser measure
are reflected in modern fabrics.
If high praise is due to the artist who, by a skilful association of
different colours of co-ordinate tones, creates the picture that
delights the sense, a fair measure is also due to the artisan who not
only controls the secrets of the dyes, but has mastered the difficult
knowledge of their proper application; for the beauty of the finished
woven product depends on the judicious dyeing of the yarn more than on
anything else. From father to son for many generations has been
transmitted a knowledge of those particular vegetable and animal
products of root, leaf, fruit, and insect, and the manner of their use,
by which the imperishable lustrous sheen and colour of the finest woven
fabrics are produced. Indeed, this art requires to-day more technical
knowledge than any other branch of rug weaving, since modern designs are
no longer more than the imitation of those in older carpets; and so
important is it regarded that a successful dyer is a man of distinction
in his tribe.
The sources from which are obtained many of the dyes that give the
innumerable carpet colours are recorded. A few of them are received from
remote countries, but most of the plants from which they are extracted
grow in marshes and on hills and plains where the nomads wander with
their flocks. Many of them are used without blending, but even some of
the seven primary colours are derived by proper blending; and from a
number of dyes of different strengths and qualities are produced an
infinite number of rich and delicate shades.
The principal blues of Oriental rugs are obtained from indigo. This is
derived from colouring matter in the leaves of plants of the genus
_Indigofera_, that grow to a height of four to six feet in the East
Indies, when they are cut and placed in a vat containing water. In about
twelve hours fermentation ensues; and after this subsides the liquid is
drawn off into another vat, where after one or two hours of agitation
the indigo forms as a precipitate. Many different species of this plant
grow wild throughout Asia, and from the earliest times have been used to
produce dye-stuff. Indigo is one of the most valuable of all dyes, as by
using it in conjunction with others an infinite variety of shades
result.
Some reds are obtained from the plant madder (_Rubia tinctorum_), that
grows abundantly in Central and Southwestern Asia, Its colouring
properties were known to the ancients; and for a long period it has been
cultivated in Asia Minor, where the succulent roots of the second and
third years’ growth are regularly dried and prepared for use. Other reds
are derived from the insect cochineal (_Coccus ilicis_) that lives on
oaks of the countries bordering the Mediterranean, and was known among
the Arabs as “kermes,” signifying Red Dye. After the discovery of
America another species (_Coccus cacti_) was found that was more
productive of dyeing qualities. The females, which alone are valuable,
are plucked from the trees and killed by exposing them to vapours of
acetic acid, or placing them in hot water, or in an oven. From their
dried bodies, of which over fifty thousand are necessary to make a
pound, the dye is produced. As both these dyes are noted for their
fastness, they are constantly used, but when silk or wool is to be dyed
cochineal is preferable to madder.
The yellow dyes are obtained from several sources. Some are from the
berries of plants of Western Asia. Others are from the leaves of the
sumach bushes, that are indigenous to nearly every part of the world. An
orange tinge is derived from the turmeric extracted from the short root
stocks of a plant of the genus _Curcuma_. From time immemorial a
beautiful yellow has been obtained from saffron. It is the product of
the stigmas of the fragrant crocus, which are so small that over four
thousand are necessary to furnish an ounce of dried saffron; yet the dye
is so powerful that it will give a distinct tint to seven hundred
thousand times its weight of water. As saffron has something of a
stimulating effect on the human system, it has been taken by the
Persians when mixed with their rice.
With none of these three basic colours was any national feeling
associated, yet the Persians excelled in the use of blues. The Turkomans
of Turkestan and Asia Minor produced better reds than any other colour,
and the best yellows, even if generally inferior in positiveness to
blues and reds, were those of the Chinese.
Though other primary and secondary colours sometimes result from the
application of a single dye, the many thousand different tints can only
be produced by the blending of two or more. Moreover, the qualities of
the same dye vary greatly, as they depend on the soil where the plant
grew, the time of year when it was removed, and the weather and other
conditions prevailing during the dyeing.
In nature green is one of the most pleasing colours, but in carpets it
is most unsatisfactory, as it has generally a faded appearance, due
probably to the fact that one of the dyes of which it is formed by
blending is less permanent than the other. The Chinese greens obtained
from the buckthorns are generally the best.
Greys and browns are sometimes derived from gall nuts, and reddish brown
from henna. For very dark browns and black, iron pyrites has been
largely used in both old and modern rugs; but unfortunately the dye has
a corrosive effect on the wool, so that the black knots of old rugs are
often worn to the warp.
In parts of India flowers of the bastard teak (_Butea frondosa_) make a
favourite dye, from which are produced, by blending with other dyes, a
large number of shades ranging from deep yellow to brownish copper
tones. Another well known dye is _Butti lac_, obtained from an insect,
_Coccus lacca_, that lives on the twigs of trees. It is a substitute for
cochineal and produces different shades of red, crimson, terra cotta,
and purple, according to the other dyes and the mordants with which it
is blended.
Besides these few dyes are innumerable others that are used either
singly or in combination. Furthermore, different colour effects are
produced by the application of different mordants, which it is necessary
to use for the reason that without them many fibrous materials are
unable to absorb a large number of the dyes. The most valuable of all
mordants is alum; and the sulphate of iron and tin are largely employed
in the case of red colours. Of the vegetable mordants, pomegranate rind,
which contains some yellow colouring matter, is the best known. Valonia
also is sometimes used, as well as limes, lemons, the fruit of the
tamarind, and the mango.
In the monograph of Mr. Harris on the “Carpet Weaving Industry of
Southern India” are a number of directions from an old manuscript owned
by a dyer who stated that he was the descendant of twenty generations of
dyers who originally came from Tabriz, and that he had made his copy
from a Persian book of dyes which had belonged to his grandfather. A few
of these are given below, because they show not only the dyes and
mordants, but also the methods employed.
“Birbuls Blue. Take cinnabar, indigo, and alum, grind and sift lighter
than the light dust of the high hills; soak for ten hours; keep stirring
it; put in the wool and soak for many hours. Boil for three hours; wash
in kurd water, water in which kurds and whey have been well beaten up;
leave for three hours, and then wash and beat again in water.
“A Fine Indigo Blue. Take indigo, soak it in water for twelve hours,
grind it to a fine paste in a mortar, add some _Terminalia citrina_,
pomegranate peel, and alum; and mix thoroughly. Boil; put the water into
the hot bath and keep stirring till cold. Now mix in some iron-filings
water, and boil steadily for another two and a half to three hours; wash
with a beating and dry.
“Ruddy Brown Grey. Take sulphate of iron, _Terminalia citrina_, oak
galls, and alum; mix well; dry; then steep for twenty-four hours. Put in
the wool; soak it for twenty-four hours, then boil for two or three
hours. Dip in a soda-bath, wash, and dry.
“Cinnamon. Take oak galls, acacia bark, cinnabar, and alum, and steep
for a night. Put in the wool, and soak for twenty or thirty hours; boil
the water for two or three hours and give a soda-bath wash; dip in
acidulated water; and wash again with beating.
“Crimson. Take lac colour and cochineal. Steep for from four to six days
in the sun, in hot weather for the lesser time, stirring constantly till
a rich deep colour comes where some has stood for a few minutes in a
thin glass bottle and settled. Then strain through two cloths, and put
in pomegranate rind and good iron-filings water. Add mineral acid;
steep wool for thirty-six hours, then boil for three hours, wash well,
and dry.
[Illustration: _COLOUR PLATE II—OUSHAK CARPET_
_The colours and pattern of this antique Oushak are similar to those of
the best examples that remain of the carpets woven in Asia Minor during
the XV and XVI Centuries. The deep blue of the central field, the rich
red of the medallions, and the golden yellow of the leaves are entirely
unlike the more subdued hues found in Persian rugs. Strongly contrasting
with them are the more delicate tones of the tendrils and leaves, which
display in their drawing a keen sense of refinement. In the formal
pattern of the field are stateliness and elegance; in the narrow borders
are simplicity and grace. Such colours and drawing show that the early
Asia Minor weavers had an intense appreciation of the ennobling
qualities of beauty and harmony._
_Loaned by Mr. James F. Ballard_]
“Pale Greyish Green. Take copper rust, asburg,[5] and alum. Mix well
with any hot water, not boiling; soak wool for eighteen hours, then boil
for three hours. Give a bath with water acidulated with some limes, and
dry in shade.
“Old Gold and Rich Yellow. Take turmeric and asburg, cinnabar and alum.
Soak all night. Steep wool for twenty-four hours, boil for four and a
half hours, wash with a beating, and dry in shade.
“Dark Grey. Take of the fruit of _Cupressus sempervirens_, seeds and
seed pods of babul (_Acacia arabica_), iron-filings water, and alum.
Steep over night. Now add the water and let it soak for twenty-four
hours, then boil for two or three hours, until the colour is right, then
wash and dry in the sun.
“Rose Colour. Take ratanjot (_Onosma echioides_), a thought of
cochineal, manjit (_Rubia cordifolia_) or lac colour a very little, and
cinnabar. Add water, soak them for twelve hours, put in wool, and steep
for thirty-six hours; cook it for three hours, then bathe the wool in
alum and wash nicely; afterward dry in the shade.
“Persian Scarlet. Take lac colour, and if you choose a little cochineal
for richness, and soak from four to six days; strain it in two cloths
and add alum and a little turmeric; let it stand for three hours. Put
wool in and steep for twenty-four hours, then boil for two hours. Take
out the wool and add mineral acid; re-enter wool and boil an hour more.
Wash fifteen minutes when cold, and dry in the shade.
“Saffron Yellow. Take turmeric, cinnabar, and soda, add water and keep
for a full day. Then add some alum, make the dip, and soak the wool for
thirty hours. Cook it for several hours, and dry in the shade after
beating and good washing.
“Rich Yellow. Take asburg and turmeric, soak for a night in water, steep
the wool for twenty-four hours, add alum, shake out, and dry in shade.”
Identical shades of a number of colours are not produced in all parts of
the Orient, not only for the reason that soil, moisture, and climate
affect the colour values of dye-stuff, but because each family of dyers
preserve inviolable the craft secrets transmitted from their
forefathers. Thus it happens that different parts of the rug-producing
countries adhere to particular tones that help to identify the locality
where the fabrics were woven.
Unfortunately the Western aniline dyes, which were introduced about the
year 1860 and quickly adopted because they are cheaper and less
complicated in their application, have to such an extent transplanted
some of these fine old vegetable dyes that a number of the richest and
most delicate colours found in the rugs of a former century are no
longer produced. Thus the superb blue of the fine old Ispahans, as well
as of lustre tiles and illuminated manuscripts, belongs to a lost art.
The disadvantages of the aniline dyes are several: they have a tendency
to make the fibres of the textile fabric brittle, and when it is wet the
colours will frequently run. Some dyes also fade more readily than
others, so that if a colour be the product of two or more dyes, the
resultant tint may be totally unlike the original. On the other hand,
not all vegetable dyes are fast; but as they fade they mellow into more
pleasing shades. Efforts have been made to encourage the use of old
vegetable dyes; but unless the laws which have been enacted in parts of
Asia to restrict the importation of aniline dyes be more stringently
enforced than in the past, the cultivation in the garden patch of the
dye-producing herbs and plants will soon cease to be the time-honoured
occupation it was in days gone by.
Almost as important as the art of preparing the dyes is that of properly
applying them to the yarns. It is an art that demands infinite pains in
its technique, as well as a lifetime to acquire. It is in itself a
separate profession practised by artisans who guard with jealousy the
sacred secrets that transmitted from generation to generation occupy
their thoughts to the exclusion of almost everything else. The homes of
these professional dyers in the larger villages and cities are located
on a stream of water which possesses mineral properties that long
experience has proven especially suitable as solvents for the different
kinds of colouring matter. Ranged about the walls of their low dwellings
are jars or vats containing liquid dye of various colours. Suspended
above them, from hooks driven into beams, are the yarns from which,
after immersion in the proper vats, the liquids are allowed to drain.
After this the yarns are exposed for the proper length of time to the
dry air and burning sun. It is, therefore, the suitable mordants, the
preparation of the proper dyes for the vats, the immersion of the yarn
in correct sequence and for the correct length of time, as well as
the exposure to the glare and heat of the sun for a definite period to
be gauged to the exact moment, on which the colour results depend. This
complicated process by which, for instance, the infinitely different
shades of a red, a blue, or a brown may be conveyed to yarn by using the
same dyes but by slightly modifying the steps requires the greatest
precision, for which no rule but an experience amounting almost to
instinct is the guide.
[Illustration: PLATE 6. FERAGHAN RUG]
There was a time when the Oriental had not learned the meaning of
_tempus fugit_ or seen the glitter of Western gold, when his dyeing and
weaving were proud callings, in which entered his deepest feelings. Then
the old vegetable dyes that mellow, grow softer and more lustrous, were
almost exclusively used; but now throughout all weaving countries the
dyer has deteriorated so that he can no longer produce some of the rich
colours in use half a century ago. Yet remote from the principal lines
of travel, on the edges of the desert, in lonely valleys, among rugged
mountains, half-tamed tribes are still dyeing their hand-spun yarn as
did their fathers’ fathers.
CHAPTER V.
WEAVING
NEAR the tents of some nomadic tribes may occasionally be seen crude
looms on which are woven some of the most interesting rugs that now
reach the Western markets. In all probability they are not dissimilar to
what were used thousands of years ago, for it would be impossible to
construct a simpler loom. Where two trees suitably branching are found
growing a few feet apart, all of the upper branches are removed
excepting two, which are so trimmed as to leave a crotch at the same
height in each tree. In each crotch is rested the end of a pole or beam,
and parallel to it is placed another extending at a short distance above
the ground from trunk to trunk. Or, as is more frequently the case,
roughly hewn posts are firmly implanted in the ground and horizontal
beams are stretched between them. In the upper one is a groove with a
rod to which one end of the warp, consisting of strong threads of yarn
numbering from ten to thirty to the inch, is attached, while the other
end is tightly stretched and firmly secured to the lower horizontal
beam. Sometimes the beams to which the warp is attached are placed
perpendicularly, so that the weaver may stand and move sideways as the
work progresses. But among a very large number of those tribes that are
constantly wandering in search of new pastures for their flocks and
herds, it is customary to let the loom lie flat on the ground, while the
weaver sits on the finished part of the rug.
[Illustration: PLATE A.—AN UPRIGHT LOOM]
Under more favourable circumstances, when the tribes live in villages or
cities, the looms are so made that the weavers are not compelled to bend
in order to tie the first row of knots or stand erect to finish the last
rows of a long rug. Of the several devices by which the weaver may
remain seated while at work, the crudest consists of a plank used as a
seat, which rests on the rungs of two ladders placed parallel to each
other at the sides of the rug. As the work progresses, the plank is
raised and rested upon the higher rungs. More frequently, however, both
upper and lower beams of the frame have the shape of cylinders of small
diameter, which revolve between the upright posts. The lower ends of the
threads of warp are attached to the lower beam, and the other ends may
either be wound several times around the upper one or else pass over it
and be kept taut by weights attached to them. Such a loom is generally
used for weaving very large rugs, which are rolled up on the lower beam
as the work progresses.
In Plate A (Page 45) is represented a loom commonly used in many parts
of the Orient. When preparing it for weaving two stakes are driven in
the ground at a suitable distance apart, and about them the warp is
wound in the way a figure eight is formed. The warp is then carefully
transferred to two rods that are attached to the upper and lower beams.
If it has been carefully wound, none of the threads should be slack; but
if desired the tension may be further increased by different devices.
Two other rods, known as “Healds,” are then attached to the front and
back threads of warp; or in the case of a single rod, it is attached to
the back threads, as shown in the Plate. A lease rod is next inserted
between the threads of warp that cross below the upper beam, and another
is placed below it where, if necessary, it is supported in position by
loops. When the weaving begins, a short web is generally woven at the
lower end to protect the knots from wear. After the first row has been
tied, the shuttle carrying the thread of weft is passed between the
front and back threads of warp; the heald rod attached to these back
threads is then pulled forward, so that they are now in front of the
others, and the shuttle is passed back. If the rug is narrow, only one
shuttle is used; but if the rug is wide, or if the weft consists of two
threads of unequal thickness, a shuttle is passed across from each side.
Every thread of warp is in this way completely encircled by the thread
of weft as it passes and repasses. When weaving large rugs, there is an
advantage in having two heald rods, as by their use the distance between
the front and back threads of warp may be increased. The object of the
lease rod is to prevent any slack caused by drawing forward the threads
of warp, and is accomplished in a very simple manner, as will be seen by
studying the drawing; since when the tension of the back threads is
increased by drawing them forward, the tension of the front threads is
also increased by displacing the lease rods which thereby stretches
them.
[Illustration: PLATE 7. FERAGHAN RUG]
The products of the loom are divided according to their weave into
three separate classes. The simplest of these are the kilims, which are
without pile and consist only of warp and weft to which a few
embroidered stitches representing some symbol are occasionally added.
A more elaborately made class are the Soumaks. They consist of warp
covered by flat stitches of yarn and of a thread of weft which extends
across and back between each row of stitches in the old rugs and between
each second and third row of stitches in the new rugs. In the narrow,
perpendicular lines that define both borders and designs the stitch is
made by the yarn encircling two adjacent threads of warp; but in other
parts of the rug it is made by the yarn passing across two adjacent
threads of warp at the front, and after encircling them at the back,
recrossing them again at the front. It is then continued across the next
pair of adjacent threads of warp. The result is that at the back of
these rugs each of the two threads of warp encircled by the yarn appears
as a separate cord, while at the front the yarn passes diagonally across
four threads of warp. As this diagonal movement is reversed in each
succeeding row, the surface has an uneven appearance sometimes termed
“herring bone” weave.
By far the largest class of rugs are those with a pile. When making
them, the weaver begins at the bottom and ties to each pair of adjacent
threads of warp a knot of yarn so as to form a horizontal row. A thread
of weft is then passed, as often as desired, between the threads of warp
and pressed more or less firmly with a metal or wooden comb upon the
knots, when they are trimmed with a knife to the desired length. Another
horizontal row of knots is tied to the threads of warp; again the yarn
of weft is inserted; and so the process continues until the pile is
completed. In tying the knots, work almost invariably proceeds from left
to right and from the bottom to the top. It is but rarely that the warp
is stretched horizontally and that the knots are tied in rows parallel
to the sides. It is still more infrequently that a rug is found in which
the knots are tied by working from the centre to the right and left, and
to the top and bottom. These interesting exceptions may easily be
discovered by rubbing the hand over the pile, when it will be noticed
that the knots lie on one another so as to face the same direction,
which is the opposite to that in which the work of tying advanced, or as
is generally the case, from top to bottom.
The compactness, durability, and value of a rug depend somewhat on the
number of knots in any particular area. Yet if the yarn is coarse, the
rug may be compact even though the number of knots be small; and if the
yarn is fine, the rug may be loosely woven, either because the rows of
knots have not been firmly pressed down, or because there are several
“filling threads” of weft, and still the number of knots be large. A
square inch is a convenient size for measurement; but since all parts of
a rug are not woven with equal compactness, the measurement should be
made in several places if exactness be required. In loosely woven
pieces, such as the Oushaks and some of the Genghas, there may be less
than twenty knots to the square inch; but among the more closely woven,
as the Kirmans and Bokharas, are frequently several hundred.
These knots are of two classes, the Ghiordes and the Sehna. The Ghiordes
are found in all rugs of Asia Minor and Caucasia, in some of the rugs of
India, and in most of the rugs of Persia. They are named after the town
of Ghiordes in Asia Minor, where some of the finest Asiatic pieces were
made, and which tradition states was once the ancient Gordion, noted
even in the days of Alexander. In tying the knot, the two ends of yarn
appear together at the surface included between two[6] adjacent threads
of warp around which they have been passed, so that the tighter the yarn
is drawn the more compact the knot becomes. The three different ways of
tying this knot are shown in Plate B, Figs. 1, 2, and 3 (Page 49), of
which the second is known as a “right hand” and the third as a “left
hand” knot. The Sehna knots, which are used in the Turkoman, Chinese,
many of the Persian, and in some of the Indian rugs, take their name
from the city of Sehna in Persia. In tying them, a piece of yarn
encircles a thread of warp and is twisted so that its ends appear at the
surface, one at each side of the adjacent thread of warp, as is shown in
Plate B, Figs. 4, 5, and 6. According as this thread of warp is to the
right or the left of the one they encircle, the knots are known as
“right-hand” or “left-hand” knots,[7] but in the appearance of the
carpet there is no distinction. If the pile of a rug is carefully
parted, the two ends of yarn forming a Sehna knot can be separated; but
with the Ghiordes knot this is impossible, as will be understood by
studying Plate B, in which Figs. 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, and 9 are Ghiordes
knots, and Figs. 4, 5, 6, and 10 are Sehna knots. As a rule, the Sehna
knots, which permit of closer weaving and clearer definition of pattern,
appear in rugs of shorter nap.
[Illustration: PLATE B.—Nos. 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, Ghiordes knots. Nos. 4,
5, 6, 10, Sehna knots. No. 11, Weft-overcasting. No. 12,
Double-overcasting. No. 13, Weft-selvage. No. 14, Double-selvage. Nos.
15, 16, 17, illustrate one, two, and three threads of weft passing
between two rows of knots.]
The nice distinctions in the technique of weaving are rarely understood
even by those who are familiar with Oriental rugs. The general pattern,
which next to colour is the characteristic that most quickly arrests the
attention, is often the sole guide by which novices guess the class. The
more experienced will observe if the knot be Ghiordes or Sehna, and
examine the finish at the sides and ends; but few give the peculiarities
of the weave the consideration they deserve. This, perhaps, is because
only those who have made a special study would believe the constancy
with which members of a tribe or locality have followed the same method
of tying the knot and inserting the weft. The different methods of
treatment by separate tribes are sometimes only slight, but they afford
a most important clue for determining the place of origin of doubtful
classes. In fact, nearly every class has a typical weave differentiating
it from all other classes. To be sure, there are exceptions to the
established type which are inevitable; since, for instance, a man from
the Feraghan district might marry a woman from the adjoining Hamadan
district, who, to please her husband, might weave a rug with pattern
common to his district but follow the style of weaving that she has been
familiar with from childhood. Nevertheless, weavers of a particular
district adhere more closely to a typical style of weaving than they do
to any other characteristic of a rug. Nor is this surprising, since
weaving is learned in earliest childhood; and as it contains no elements
calculated to stimulate the imagination, it is mechanically followed
with stereotyped precision. An innovation in pattern, by copying some
strange designs that strike the fancy, is far more likely. These
distinctions in weaving may be conveniently divided into those that
affect the knot, the warp, and the weft.[8]
THE KNOT.—Not only may a knot be tied as a Ghiordes or a Sehna knot, but
it may have other distinguishing peculiarities; as, for instance, it may
be of fine or coarse wool. This is most conveniently observed at the
back, where it will be seen that the knots of rugs such as the Bokhara,
Kirman, Joshaghan, and Bergamo are tied with fine yarn; while the knots
of other rugs, as the Samarkand, Bijar, Gorevan, Kurdistan, Yuruk, and
Kazak are tied with coarse yarn. Whether the yarn be fine, medium, or
coarse, all specimens of any class will show a remarkable conformity.
Also in some rugs the knots are drawn very tight against the warp, while
in others the yarn encircles the warp loosely. Any one who has examined
the back of many Sarouks, Kashans, Kirmans, or Daghestans, and rubbed
the finger-nail against them, could not possibly mistake them for a
Shiraz, Kulah, Yuruk, or Karabagh, which are less tightly woven. Again,
as a result of using yarn in which the double thread that forms two or
more ply has been very loosely or very tightly twisted together, there
is some difference in the direction or slant of the strands forming the
yarn, where it shows at the back, though this feature is not pronounced.
For example, in most Afghans, Yuruks, Bijars, and others the strands of
yarn where it crosses the warp in forming the knot lie for the most part
in a direction parallel to the weft; while in other rugs, as Mosuls,
Kurdistans, and Kazaks, the strands of yarn slant irregularly.
Furthermore, in some rugs, as the Melez and Yuruks, as a result of the
threads of yarn being strung rather far apart, each half of a knot
encircling a thread of warp stands out at the back distinctly from the
other with clear cut edges; while in many rugs, as the Shiraz or Sehna,
each half is very closely pressed together. Also in some rugs, as
Sarabends and Afshars, each of these half knots where they show at the
back have the same length, measured in a direction parallel to the warp,
as width, measured in a direction parallel to the weft; while in such
rugs as the Kazaks, since the yarn generally consists of several ply,
the length exceeds the width; and in a few rugs the length is less than
the width.
THE WARP.—The appearance of the back of a rug is partly due to the
relative positions of the two threads of warp encircled by a knot. If,
for instance, in any Kazak a pin be thrust through the nap wherever a
single perpendicular line of one colour appears at the surface, it will
be seen that each of the two threads of warp encircled by a single knot
lie side by side with equal prominence. This is shown in Plate B, Figs.
7 and 7-a (Page 49), in which the former represents a section of a rug
cut transversely to the threads of warp, and the latter the appearance
of the rug at the back. The same will be found true of Beluchistans,
Feraghans, Yuruks, and many others. If, however, a Kulah,
Persian-Kurdish, or Karabagh be similarly examined, it will be seen that
one thread of warp to each knot is depressed, so that the back has a
slightly corrugated appearance (as in Plate B, Figs. 8 and 8-a). And in
the case of a Bijar or Sarouk it will be seen that one thread of warp,
included in every knot, has been doubled under so as to be entirely
concealed from view; with the result that the foundation of warp has a
double thickness, which makes the rug much stronger, as in Plate B, Fig.
9, representing a Ghiordes knot, and Fig. 10 representing a Sehna knot.
To be sure, it occasionally happens that in rugs of a particular class
some may have each thread of warp included in a knot equally prominent
and others may have one slightly depressed; or that in rugs of another
class some may have one thread of warp depressed and others may have it
entirely concealed; but as a rule these tribal features show a
remarkable constancy. These relative positions of the two threads of
warp encircled by a knot are partly due to the degree of closeness with
which the threads of warp are strung, also partly to the method of
inserting the threads of weft or “filling” between the rows of knots;
but more than all else they are due to the way one end of the knots is
pulled when they are tied.
THE WEFT.—In the character and arrangement of weft are technical
differences that are more serviceable than any other feature for
distinguishing between the rugs of different tribes and districts. So
subtle are some of them that they can be learned only by long and
painstaking study, and are appreciated by few except native weavers.
Nevertheless, to any one who will carefully examine almost any
well-known classes, it will be apparent that these differences in the
weave are real, and that they are sufficiently constant to differentiate
one class from another. The fine brown weft of the Bokhara, or equally
fine bluish weft of a Sarouk that is almost concealed between firmly
tied knots; the fine thread of cotton weft passing but once between two
rows of knots and covered only by the transverse warp of the Sehna; the
coarse thread of cotton weft similarly passing but once between two rows
of knots in the Hamadan; the coarse thread of cotton weft that once
crossing and recrossing appears irregularly between appressed rows of
knots in Kermanshahs; the bead-like appearance of the threads of weft
that, as a rule, pass many times between two rows of knots in Genghas;
the crudely spun weft of coarse diameter crossing and recrossing once
between the rows of knots in modern Mosuls; the very fine reddish brown
weft that entirely conceals from view the warp in old Bergamos, —are
features peculiar to these separate classes with which every rug
expert is familiar. The weft of many other classes is equally
distinctive, though there are exceptions to the types. It should be
remembered, however, that the weave of many rugs woven over a hundred
and fifty years ago is different from the weave of rugs woven only fifty
years ago; and that many modern pieces cheaply made for commercial
purposes are more crudely woven than were the same classes thirty years
ago.
[Illustration: PLATE 8. HAMADAN RUG]
These distinctions in the weft relate to the material of which it is
made, its colour, the size of the diameter, the way in which it is spun,
to its loose or compressed condition between separate rows of knots, as
well as to the number of times it crosses the warp between them, and to
whether it is inserted with much or little slack. Most rugs are woven
with woollen weft of a natural colour, but occasionally it has a reddish
brown, a blue, or a yellow tint. When cotton, jute, or hemp are used,
they are almost invariably of natural colour; only in a very few pieces,
as some of the Kulahs, are both wool and jute ever used in the same
piece. The weft of some classes, as Bokharas, Sarouks, and Bergamos, is
of a very small diameter, and of others, as the Hamadans and Kurdistans,
it is of relatively large diameter. In some classes, as the Karajes and
Genghas, the weft is tightly spun like twine; while in the Beluchistans,
Mosuls, and Kurdistans it is loosely spun, so that the projecting fibres
of wool give a rough appearance to its surface.
Also the weavers of some districts invariably compress very firmly the
yarn of weft between every two rows of knots, while other weavers
compress it only to a slight degree; as, for instance, in the Afghan,
Tabriz, and Kirman the rows of knots are pressed down so firmly that the
weft is almost concealed at the back and the transverse threads of warp
are entirely covered; whilst, on the other hand, in the Karabagh or
Kazak between every two rows of knots the weft and part of the
transverse threads of warp are exposed to view. According as the rows of
knots are pressed down upon the threads of weft or not, one of the two
halves of each separate knot, as shown at the back, may extend slightly
or very much beyond the other in the direction of the length of the rug,
or each of them may lie in a straight line at right angles to the warp.
Comparing Kazak, Kutais, and Tiflis rugs, for example, it will be
noticed that as a rule the line thus formed in Tiflis rugs is nearly an
even, clear cut line at right angles to the warp, that in the Kutais
part of one knot extends beyond the other, while in Kazaks this
unevenness is even more conspicuous. Or again, if typical Shirvans,
Kabistans, and Daghestans be compared, it will be noticed that in
Shirvans the half-knots, or parts of the knot encircling the two
adjacent threads of warp, are often inclined at an angle of at least
thirty degrees to the line of weft so as to present a serrated
appearance, but that the alignment formed by knots of Daghestans is
nearly even, and that of Kabistans is intermediate. To be sure, there
are exceptions to this rule, but these features are remarkably constant.
The number of times that a thread of weft is inserted between two rows
of knots varies with the practice of different localities, but is almost
constant in each locality. Weavers of Sehna rugs insert only a single
thread of weft between every two rows of knots, which winds in front of
and behind alternate threads of warp, with the result that the back of
these rugs have a checkered or quincunx appearance, caused by minute
portions of exposed warp and weft crossing each other at right angles.
In Hamadans a much heavier thread of weft passes only once before and
behind alternate threads of warp, so that the appearance of the weave is
very similar to that of Sehnas.[9] In almost all other rugs the weft
crosses twice, that is, across and back once, between every two rows of
knots so as to completely encircle each thread of warp. The weave of a
few rugs, as some Anatolians, shows the weft crossing three times, that
is, twice in one direction and once in the opposite direction. In the
Genghas, Tcherkess, Bergamos, and in many rugs over one hundred and
fifty years old, the threads of weft frequently cross many times; and it
is not unusual for the number to vary in different parts of the same
rug. In Plate B, Figs. 15, 16, and 17 (Page 49), is illustrated the
appearance of the back of rugs in which a thread of weft crosses once,
twice, and three times between two adjacent rows of knots. There are
likewise rugs in which the number varies with methodical regularity; for
instance, in Khorassans it is usual to find an extra thread of weft
inserted at intervals of every few rows of knots; in many Herats the
threads of weft cross twice between several successive rows of knots,
then three times between the following several rows, and so continue to
alternate; and in some of the Kulahs a thread of woollen weft that
crosses twice alternates with a single coarser thread of jute.
As the shuttle passes back and forth, the thread of weft may be allowed
considerable slack, so that when it is pressed down by the comb it will
fit about the sides of the warp; or it may be drawn tightly across, so
that it has a tendency to displace the threads of warp. If, for
instance, a Hamadan and one of the Feraghans which, unlike the majority
of them, has only one thread of weft crossing between the rows of knots,
be examined, it will be seen that in the Hamadan the weft crosses with
hardly any slack, so that the warp stands out clearly and well defined
at the back; but that in the Feraghan the weft crosses with much slack,
so that it folds about the warp, which accordingly seems slightly
imbedded in it at the back. In some rugs the weft is passed across once
with very slight slack, and as it recrosses it is allowed much slack.
These features of the weave, which are followed with remarkable
constancy in the same class, can be observed to advantage in a fragment
of a rug cut transversely to the direction of the warp. If, for
instance, the weft which crosses and recrosses between the rows of knots
be carefully removed so as not to disturb its mould, it will be noticed
in the case of many rugs that each thread of yarn has a similar shape of
moderately deep undulations, which show how it conformed to the warp and
indicate how slack it was when inserted. In the case of a few rugs, as
the Luristans, each thread will likewise have similar undulations, but
they will be very prominent. If, on the other hand, the weft be removed
from some classes, as the Tabriz, Sarouk, and Kashan, one of the two
threads will be almost straight or have slight undulations, while the
other thread will have deep undulations. The weft of the Herez, Herats,
old Khorassans, and Koniehs have the same peculiarities, excepting that
the thread with very slight undulations is of three or four ply, while
the other is of a single ply.
The only instruments employed in weaving are the knife, comb, and
scissors. The first is used, after each row of knots has been tied, to
cut the ends of yarn to nearly the proper length; the second, to press
firmly each row of knots; and the last, to trim the nap with care, so
that the finished product may present an even and compact appearance.
FINISH OF SIDES.—As the sides are constantly exposed to wear weavers of
different districts strengthen them in different ways, which may be
designated as Weft Overcasting, Double Overcasting, Weft Selvage, Double
Selvage, and Added Selvage. Each of these terms, though not euphonious,
suggests the method employed. In Weft Overcasting (Plate B, Fig. 11,
Page 49) the thread of weft, after encircling the threads of warp to
which the knots are tied, is wound about a much heavier cord that is
strung at the side of the rug for a space equal to the thickness of the
knots. It then partly encircles the threads of warp between the next two
rows of knots as it passes to the other side, when it is wound about the
heavy cord there. As this process continues, the cords at the sides are
completely overcast with the thread of weft. When the sides have a
Double Overcasting (Plate B, Fig. 12), heavy yarn is wound about the
cord that has previously been encircled by the weft. Frequently several
threads of yarn take the place of a single heavy cord. Weft Selvage
(Plate B, Fig. 13) is made by placing two or more heavy cords instead of
a single one at the side of the warp, and encircling them by the weft in
figure-eight fashion. As they extend beyond the rows of knots they form
a plain flat selvage. The Double Selvage (Plate B, Fig. 14) is used
among nomadic tribes such as the Beluches and Afghans, whose rugs
receive an unusual amount of hard wear, so that an extra selvage is
necessary. In adding this extra selvage the threads of weft are carried
about the heavy cords, as in weft selvage, and then the extra yarn is
wound over it in figure-eight fashion so as again to encircle the heavy
cords. In Added Selvage the heavy cords are not encircled by the weft,
but are attached to the side of the rug by the extra yarn that winds
about them figure-eight fashion, and also encircles two or more
adjoining threads of warp. Sometimes also the selvage is “Mixed,” or
made by the weft encircling only one or two of the heavy cords, and then
an extra yarn is wound about these and the remaining cord or cords.
Moreover, the Double Overcasting and Double Selvage may be “attached”
more firmly to the sides of the rug by the yarn passing in figure-eight
fashion about the adjacent thread or threads of warp between the two
rows of knots. When a Double Overcasting is thus “attached,” it is
somewhat similar to a two-cord Double Selvage.
These are the principal methods of finishing the sides, though they are
sometimes modified by tribal customs. Simple as they seem, skill is
required in both overcasting and making the selvage; for if carelessly
done the sides are frequently made to curl. This is occasionally found
to be the defect of old rugs, the worn sides of which have been recently
overcast by inexperienced weavers. When such is the case, removing the
stitches and overcasting with more care will remove the defect.
[Illustration: PLATE 9. SAROUK RUG]
FINISH OF ENDS.—The ends, which receive more attention than the sides,
are treated in several different ways; and in many rugs a distinction
exists between the treatment of each end. The simplest finish is where
the warp and weft are woven like the threads of a kilim, and extend
beyond the pile as a web, which may be exceedingly short, or, as in
Beluches and Afghans, several inches long. Frequently the ends are
finished by a selvage formed by cords heavier than the weft braided into
the warp; or the upper end may be doubled back and hemmed. It is not
unusual to find both web and selvage; but though the finish be web,
selvage, or web and selvage, the warp of the end finished last generally
forms a fringe, and often each end will have a fringe. Sometimes each
separate thread of warp hangs loose; sometimes a number a foot or more
in length are twisted together in cords; and again they are knotted or
are tied to one another diagonally so as to form a network from which
hang the loose ends. Very frequently the loops formed by the warp that
encircled the rod extend beyond the web at the lower end of the rug, or
else are braided about the ultimate thread of weft in the web. Though
the warp and weft are generally undyed in the body of the rug, the web
of the ends is very frequently coloured. Some of the webs, particularly
those of the Beluches, are embroidered; and through others, as the
Kurdistans, a parti-coloured cord runs transversely; still others, as
Bergamos, are adorned with shells, beads, or other articles to avert the
evil eye.
In the study of rugs it should be remembered that the effect of rough
usage is so considerable that in old pieces the webs of the ends have
frequently disappeared, leaving short fringes composed of the ends of
warp from which some rows of knots have been removed, and that recent
overcasting of the sides may take the place of former selvage.
The many characteristics of knot, warp, weft, sides, and ends, with all
the variations made by innumerable tribes, remarkably constant in their
methods, are technical peculiarities that are uninteresting to those who
feel only an aesthetic interest in rugs, yet they demand the most
careful consideration of whoever would learn to differentiate accurately
between the many classes. Though admitting of exceptions, these
peculiarities are real and definite, yet their analyses often require
the subtlest perception of small though exact distinctions, without
which expert understanding would be impossible.
CHAPTER VI
DESIGNS AND SYMBOLS
HOWEVER well woven, however resplendent in rich modulations of colour,
Oriental rugs would quickly lose their fascination if in patterns and
designs there were not at least some partial expression of the simple
lives of the people, of their religious feelings, and of that veiled
mysticism which pervades the thought of every Eastern race.
In all nomadic rugs as well as in many others are innumerable reminders
of common life. It may be only crude outlines of the goat or camel, or
realistically drawn rose and lily; but even these are suggestive of
associations.
Religion, too, exercised on the character of rugs an important
influence, which is expressed in the symbolism of both designs and
colour. Without a doubt, some of these well-known designs have been
transmitted from the earliest times, and were once associated with
different forms of idolatry. Thus, among the old Babylonians the sun and
moon, which are sometimes seen in the old pieces, represented particular
deities; and very many of the oldest Chinese rugs that remain also
contain symbols of their deities. In the early religion of Iran, which
over 1000 years B.C. was reduced to a system by Zoroaster, the elements
were worshipped, so that designs representing these elements would
likewise represent the divine forces they personified. This ancient fire
worship of the Parsees, which even to-day has a few devotees in parts of
Persia, and the kindred sun worship have added much to the symbolism of
Oriental rugs. Buddhism also has contributed its share; and with the
spread of Mohammedanism appeared a Saracenic influence that is
frequently recognised. Even the two great sects of Mohammedan followers,
the Shiites and Sunnites, have had distinct effects in the use of
designs, as the former employed animal figures and the latter prohibited
them.
[Illustration: PLATE 10. SARABEND RUG]
There was, moreover, a symbolism that in a manner expressed the vague
philosophic teachings of the ancient races. It was but natural that the
early weaver engaged in tedious sedentary work, often requiring many
months of constant application to complete, should endeavour to express
therein not only artistic taste, but also the spirit of his innermost
thoughts. So as he wove he sometimes left the result, though poorly
defined and little understood to-day, of that struggle to interpret the
great mysteries of the visible and unseen universe, from which arose the
crude beginnings of philosophy.[10]
The patterns, however, of many Oriental rugs are chiefly decorative.
Even a casual examination shows that in all of them the coloured knots
of the surface represent a border surrounding a central field. The
former serves much the same function to the latter as a frame to a
picture; yet its office is in no wise subordinate. Nor is there any part
of the pattern more useful in determining the place of its origin. For
this reason it is well to clearly define the special names which in this
work are applied to its different parts. The lineal divisions are
designated “Stripes,” though they are frequently spoken of as separate
borders. At or near the centre of the border is the main stripe, which
is generally accompanied by a much narrower pair, one on each side,
known as “Guard stripes.” Very narrow stripes are sometimes called
“Ribbon stripes,” and those of only one or two knots in width are called
“Lines.” The latter are of solid colour or have the simplest geometric
device. The decoration of the ribbon stripes is also necessarily simple;
but in the main stripe of artistic rugs the patterns are often
exceedingly elaborate, of exquisite colours, and co-ordinate in
character with those of the field.
The fields display even greater diversity of pattern than the borders.
Frequently they are covered with a heterogeneous mass of detached and
unrelated figures, as in many of the nomadic rugs; or, on the other
hand, are entirely covered with repetitive patterns, as in the
Turkomans; or with intricate and correlated designs, as in the diaper
and floral patterns of so many of the Persian and Indian rugs. Others
consist of a background of solid colour on which appear isolated formal
designs, as in some of the Khorassans, or medallions on which are
represented smaller figures, as in some of the old Sehnas and Feraghans.
Occasionally the medallions are so large as to extend to the sides and
ends of the fields, and thus separate the corners into nearly triangular
shaped sections, such as are characteristic of a number of Persian and
one or two Caucasian rugs. In a few of the latter, also, the fields are
covered with large geometric figures suggesting the medallions. It is
only within comparatively modern times that weavers have used solid
colours for large portions of the fields. The intent no doubt was a
saving in labour and pains, but the effect is frequently most
gratifying; as when, for instance, the space beneath the arch of Asia
Minor prayer rugs is of a uniform red, blue, or cream, relieved only by
a gracefully suspended lamp, the tree of life, or some other emblem of
immortality.
[Illustration: PLATE C.—PRAYER ARCHES OF PERSIAN, CAUCASIAN, AND CENTRAL
ASIATIC RUGS
No. 1, Antique silk. No. 2, Kermanshah. No. 3, Khorassan. No. 4, Sarouk.
No. 5, Persian, XVI Century. No. 6, Kashan. No. 7, Feraghan. No. 8,
Shiraz. No. 9, Daghestan, Kabistan, Shirvan, Chichi, Kazak, Karabagh.
No. 10, Kazak. No. 11, Shirvan. No. 12, Karabagh (not usual). No. 13,
Beluchistan. No. 14, Bokhara, Tekke. No. 15, Khiva. No. 16, Beshire.]
The patterns of prayer rugs are not only pleasing, but have a peculiar
importance, as weavers of certain sections of the country adhere so
strictly to time-honoured traditions that the shape of the arch, or
mihrab, which is the principal feature, often denotes the class, as well
as the group, to which they belong. Some of these arches are illustrated
in Plates C and D (Pages 61 and 63), from which it will be seen that in
Persian rugs they are formed by gracefully curving lines, but that in
rugs of other groups, with the exception of a very few old Ghiordes
pieces, they are geometric. The peculiarities of the arches of the
several classes, also, are observable; as those of the Beluchistans,
which are rectilinear and relatively high, and those of the Bokharas,
which are tent-shaped, flat, and small. In the Caucasian group they have
a marked resemblance to one another and also to those of the Turkoman
rugs, but are larger than the latter. Again, the arch of almost all Asia
Minor rugs rises higher than those of any others, excepting the Persian,
and extends from one side of the field to the other. In many of them a
panel is placed above the spandrel, and occasionally a second panel is
placed beneath the field. Above the niche of some Asia Minor and
Caucasian prayer rugs is woven a small rhomboidal figure, where the
suppliant plants the pebble or bit of earth that he has brought from
Mecca; and at the sides of a few arches are crude figures, where are
placed the hands during the act of worship. More than one arch is the
exception; but now and then are seen two and even four, one above the
other, or several parallel to one another. These and other special
features associated with prayer rugs will be considered more fully in
subsequent chapters.
The smaller designs that appear in rugs and compose the general pattern
are distinguished as geometric and floral ornamentation. The former is
adopted in those countries where the population is principally nomadic;
and the latter is the accepted style in countries where exist numerous
towns and cities in which the arts have been cultivated and where a
large percentage of the population have enjoyed an advanced state of
society. Thus in Caucasia, Turkestan, Afghanistan, and Beluchistan
geometric designs are characteristic of the rugs; but in China, India,
Persia, and part of Asia Minor floral designs prevail. Sir George
Birdwood, an eminent authority on Oriental rugs, has made the statement
that the geometric designs are found among the lower Turanian and the
floral among the higher Aryan. But it seems most probable that the
adoption of the geometric or floral style of ornamentation is due not so
much to racial distinctions as to the state to which the textile art had
advanced among the different peoples and to the waves of influence that
at times spread over the countries. Thus the early rugs of Asia Minor
had patterns that were more geometric than those of later times, and
during the period when the Mongols ruled in Persia geometric patterns
were more frequently employed in the rugs of that country than
subsequently.
[Illustration: PLATE D.—PRAYER ARCHES OF ASIA MINOR RUGS
Nos. 1, 2, 3, 4, Ghiordes. Nos. 5, 6, 7, Kulah. No. 8, Ladik. Nos. 9,
10, Bergamo. Nos. 11, 12, Melez. No. 13, Kir-shehr, Mudjar. Nos. 14,
15, Konieh. No. 16, Anatolian.]
In all rugs, however, some trace of the floral design appears. Even in
the Turkoman weavings, the pattern of which is strictly geometric, some
vestige of the tree of life is manifest. In the fields of Caucasian
rugs, in which are represented squares, octagons, triangles, diagonals,
lozenges, stars, etc., the weavers have depicted designs that are almost
as geometric as those of the Turkoman rugs by which they have been
influenced; but, on the other hand, large numbers of the border designs
are distinctly floral. In the rugs of China and Asia Minor are found
both geometric and floral ornamentation, the latter predominating in
pieces woven during the last two centuries, and the former in those of
earlier date. Among the woven fabrics of India and Persia, however,
few traces of the geometric pattern remain; but vines, leaves, and
flowers form the favourite theme for decoration.
The floral patterns are the result of many centuries of growth, that
reached its highest development in the Persian carpets of the XVI and
XVII Centuries; and since then till the present time they have continued
as the most characteristic features of the rugs of that country and
India. They represent the highest technique of the weaver. In the
borders are generally represented vines from which are pendant rosettes,
palmettes, or flowers; and in the fields, particularly those of the fine
antique rugs, are a profusion of floral forms realistically portrayed.
On long, gracefully twining and intertwining stems is often the rose,
pink, violet, lotus, crocus, narcissus, or daisy. But if the rug is more
modern, in its field of uniform colour may be represented a central
medallion covered with delicate tracings enriched by bright-coloured
conventionalised flowers.
In the general pattern of all rugs are interwoven particular designs or
motives that give them a distinctive character and render the greatest
assistance in distinguishing the groups and classes. Thus the serrated
leaf and wine cup (Plate I, Fig. 1, opp. Page 226) is found only in
Caucasian and old Armenian rugs; and the design represented in Plate H,
Fig. 10 (opp. Page 194), suggestive of some Chinese character, is found
almost exclusively in Kulahs. Not only are all designs important as aids
in classification, but they have a special interest, as it is maintained
by writers of the highest authority that when employed by the earliest
weavers each had a symbolic meaning. To be sure, the origin of many has
been lost in the remote past and is unknown even to those who now employ
them; but others still represent definite ideas, as they did centuries
ago, and portray to some extent the thought of the weaver. They
therefore deserve the most careful study.
[Illustration: PLATE 11. CARPET FROM NORTHWESTERN PERSIA
Loaned by C. F. Williams, Esq., to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New
York]
Few of these designs have been transmitted from a more remote past or
have been more universally employed than has been the figure [Symbol: S]
or [Symbol: horizontal S]. It appears in each of the groups of Oriental
rugs excepting the Chinese; and two of the forms it assumes are
exceedingly like the arms of the swastika and parts of the fret as
occasionally seen in Chinese designs. In Indian rugs it is rarely found
except in the borders, which may have been copied from those of other
countries. It is very commonly seen in the Beluchistans, Tekkes, and
Beshires, of the Central Asiatic group; and in the rugs of the Persian
group that show nomadic influences. There is probably not a single class
of the Caucasian group, nor any of the Asia Minor group, with the
exception of the old Ghiordes, in which it is not sometimes represented.
It may be seen near the corner of the Asia Minor “Dragon and Phœnix”
carpet of the XIV Century, illustrated in Plate 20 (opp. Page 88); and
appears in some of the old Armenian carpets, which are believed to be
even older. That it was associated with sun worship and regarded as an
emblem of light and the deity is the accepted belief. It is possible,
however, that it was intended by some weavers to represent the serpent,
which among many different races is emblematic of superhuman knowledge.
Probably no other design has been more universally employed than the
swastika, which appears in the textile fabrics of North American
Indians, on the Maya ruins of Yucatan, among the monuments of the Nile,
and on the temples of India. Widely as is its distribution, its most
usual form of intersecting right angles is found in each of these
countries. It is not improbable that it originated in China, where it is
a most common decorative motive, and was almost invariably represented
in the borders and in many of the medallions of rugs woven before the
beginning of the XVIII Century. It is also very frequently seen in the
rugs of Samarkand, and occasionally in those of Caucasia. It seldom
appears in the rugs of Persia, Asia Minor, or Turkestan. The
universality of the design indicates its great antiquity, yet its
primitive symbolic meaning of abundance, fertility, and prosperity has
never been lost. Some of its different forms are shown in Plate O, Figs.
5-a, 5-b, 5-c, 5-d, 5-e, and 5-f (Page 291).
The reciprocal trefoil (Plate F, Fig. 17, opp. Page 158) is a very usual
design in Caucasian and Persian rugs; it is often found in some of the
rugs of India and in Beluchistans, but is very rarely seen in other
classes of the Central Asiatic or in the Chinese and Asia Minor groups.
Its origin is uncertain, but since it appears in the “Polish Carpets”
and other antique Persian carpets of strictly floral pattern, where its
drawing is more elaborate than in modern rugs, it is not improbable that
it is the conventionalised form of the lily or a spray bearing three
leaves, and that it has the emblematic significance of the tree form.
Among all primitive races the sun, moon, and stars have been associated
with their religion, so that it is surprising that so few emblems of
them are recognised in rugs. In the theology of the Chaldees, from which
the earliest weavers must have received inspiration, the sun was
regarded as one of their principal deities and the moon as another. The
sun is generally represented by a plain circle, a circle with diameters
intersecting at right angles, or a circle with small ovals intersecting
at right angles; the moon is represented by the crescent. Of much more
frequent occurrence is the eight-pointed star, another inheritance of
those ancient times when all primitive races worshipped the heavenly
bodies. It represented the female principle of the Chaldean sun god; and
it is believed, too, that it represented the deity to the Medes,
ancestors of many of the present Persians. There is a tradition among
some Eastern races that King Solomon wore a ring of diamonds arranged in
the form of an eight-pointed star, and also a crown containing a large
star of which the eight points and centre were composed of precious
stones of different colour. A star now and then seen in rugs with
colours so arranged is known as “Mohammedan’s jewel design.” The
six-pointed star, a Jewish symbol for the “shield of David,” was adopted
as a talisman by some of the Moslems. All of these stars are chiefly
nomadic symbols, they rarely if ever are seen in the rugs of China or
India, they are only occasionally found in those of Persia, and are of
most frequent occurrence in the Caucasian pieces.
Another design is an octagonal-shaped disc (Plate O, Fig. 10, Page 291),
usually about two and a half inches in diameter, on the face of which
and extending the full width are figures somewhat like hour-glasses
placed at right angles to one another. It seems not improbable that it
is of the same origin as the large designs that appear in the field of
the Holbein rug of the XV Century, illustrated in Plate 21 (opp. Page
92). It is a very old motive, and is sometimes regarded as a dial
symbolising the diurnal motion of the earth. It is of very frequent
occurrence in nomadic rugs; and is found in Beluchistans, in nearly all
Caucasians, in some rugs from Asia Minor, and in only a very few from
Persia.
The zigzag line, known as the water motive, is found in many of the rugs
of China, India, Persia, Caucasia, and Asia Minor, as well as in the
Beluchistans and Beshires of the Central Asiatic group, though in some
instances it appears as little more than a serrated line. It is
represented in the narrow guard-stripes of some of the Western Asia
Minor carpets of the XV Century. According to Mr. John Mumford, “even in
the oldest Egyptian symbolism a zigzag line stood for water and by
implication for eternity; and a succession of these arranged to
represent the sea has long been a recognised carpet design in India,
China, and Persia.”
[Illustration: _COLOUR PLATE III—MOSUL RUG_
_Long before the commercial instinct had been felt among the weavers of
the Orient, one or more of them dwelling in the Mesopotamian valley tied
the knots of this old Mosul. The central field is of camel’s hair that
shades from a rich dark chestnut at one end to lighter tones at the
other, and is enlivened by bright flowers representing those found on
the river’s banks. This variation of ground colour, the small geometric
designs at the extreme ends of the fields, the eight-pointed stars of
the main stripe of the border, and some of the drawing are nomadic
characteristics. The dainty vine and flower of the narrow guard stripes,
on the other hand, show Persian influence. This piece represents a type
of which few now remain._
_Property of the Author_]
One of the most common designs is what has been called the “latch-hook.”
When there is a long succession of latch-hooks with the straight ends
resting on a line and the hooked ends inclined in the same direction, as
in Plate K, Fig. 20 (opp. Page 230), they are called “running
latch-hooks.” Since they appear in the Dragon and Phœnix rug (opp.
Page 88), that was probably woven about the end of the XIV Century, they
are evidently a very old design, which not improbably was derived from
the Chinese fret. The hook is of different shapes, and is sometimes
perpendicular, sometimes inclined. Its particular function is to shade
or subdue the harsh effect of a sudden transition from one colour to
another that is entirely different. As such a device is unnecessary in
artistic rugs of intricate designs, it is rarely seen in any Indian or
Persian piece, excepting the modern Shiraz that frequently adopts
geometric patterns; but it is found in all the rugs of Caucasia, Central
Asia, and in most of those of Asia Minor. It is in fact as universal as
the reciprocal trefoil.
In rugs of geometric patterns are occasionally found both Greek and
Roman crosses. The latter are represented in most of the Soumak rugs,
and appear profusely in old Asia Minor or Armenian rugs, in which they
were probably woven with the intent to convey a religious significance;
but in many instances crosses are not used symbolically.
The design of a comb (Plate O, Fig. 11, Page 291) is a Mohammedan emblem
suggestive of cleanliness, yet it is not improbable that it is sometimes
intended to represent the instrument employed in pressing the threads of
weft closely against the knots. It is found mostly in Caucasian rugs,
and rarely in those of other groups.
In a large number of the finest carpets woven in Persia three or four
centuries ago was represented what is known as the Chinese cloud-band
(Plate O, Fig. 7). It appeared in Persia about the middle of the XV
Century, and was conspicuous in the carpets of Herat, Tabriz, and Gilan,
as well as in many of the “Polish Carpets.” Later it was introduced into
Asia Minor, but was never represented in any of the strictly nomadic
weavings. It appears in only a very few of the modern rugs, and these
are mostly Persian. Nor is it recognised in its usual form in any of
the Chinese rugs that now exist; though without a doubt it originated
with the Chinese, since their early mythology placed the abode of the
Supreme Ruler in the Constellation of Ursa Major, of which the stars of
the Big Dipper were represented in early art as enveloped in a band of
clouds; but in more conventionalised ornamentation the stars are omitted
and the band remains. As a motive, then, it is symbolic of heaven and
the deity.
In almost all rugs are found expressions of vegetable life, as a twig,
vine, flower, or tree. Sometimes they are most naturalistic, again they
are partly conventionalised, or so disguised, as in nomadic rugs of
geometric designs, that only by study and comparison of many forms in a
series can their origin be established. This universal adoption of
floral form was due to something more than an aesthetic love for the
beautiful, since in every country of the East some part of the tree or
plant was emblematic. Moreover, a tree form known as the Tree of Life
had a religious significance among many races. The Jews were told that
in the Garden of Eden grew the “Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil;” and
in the Book of Revelation the Apostle John speaks of “The Tree of Life
which bore twelve manner of fruits and yielded her fruit every month,
and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.” From
this passage may have been borrowed the belief of the Mohammedans in the
Tree of Life which grew in Paradise, and spread its branches that true
believers might rest beneath them and enjoy its fruits and the
companionship of beautiful houri. In the ancient lore of China is the
Taoist tradition of the Tree of Life, growing by the Sea of Jade, that
confers immortality on the fortunate who may gather and eat its fruits;
also the tradition of the mountain top where grows the sacred tree on
which the elect may climb and mount to heaven. Even among the ancient
Chaldees was a story of a tree that grew to heaven and sheltered the
earth. In different countries the Tree of Life is represented by
different kinds; in Yarkand of Eastern Turkestan it takes the form of a
cedar; in Persia it is generally the cypress. Wherever employed it is
symbolic of knowledge, resurrection, immortality.
[Illustration: PLATE 12. CARPET FROM NORTHWESTERN PERSIA
Loaned by C. F. Williams, Esq., to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New
York]
No other form of vegetable life was so universally employed in Oriental
symbolism as the lotus flower (Plate O, Figs. 16-a, b, and c), since the
Egyptian, Assyrian, Indian, Chinese, and Persian alike did it reverence.
It was, perhaps, first employed emblematically in the valley of the
Nile, but later it was held in high esteem by the inhabitants of India
where the floating blossom is regarded as an emblem of the world. It was
inseparately associated with Buddha, and its religious significance must
have extended with the spread of Buddhism. Professor Goodyear regards a
large number of designs that apparently are not related in form as
derived from it through a long series of evolutions. During the highest
development of the textile art in Persia it appears most realistically
drawn in a large number of the carpets, especially the so-called
Ispahans, or Herats, and the so-called Polish. It is also most
artistically represented in the fabrics of India, and is a favourite
design for Chinese weavers. But in other modern rugs it is seldom used
as a motive, and is so conventionalised as often to escape notice.
If the lotus was the first flower to be represented in early woven
fabrics, as seems not improbable, several others have met with greater
favour among modern weavers. Of these the rose, which is cultivated
extensively in the gardens of the East, appears in a large number of the
rugs of Persia and Asia Minor. Moreover, a pattern frequently seen in
many old Persian rugs is an all-over pattern of small bushes with
flowering roses. Almost equally popular is the lily, which is
characteristic of many of the rugs of India and of a few of Western Asia
Minor. The “Euphrates flower,” which grows by the river banks of the
Mesopotamian valley, is also occasionally found as an all-over pattern
in some of the rugs of Western Iran and Southern Caucasia. Less
frequently seen and still less frequently recognised, as they are
generally woven in small figures, are the daisy, anemone, crocus,
narcissus, pink, and violet. All are depicted chiefly on account of
their associations and beauty, and whatever emblematic meaning they are
intended to convey is generally no more than that of their colours.
There are, however, in a few old Persian carpets designs of sunflowers,
which were accepted by the Zoroastrians and the earlier sun and fire
worshippers as symbols of the sun and emblems of light.
Of the fruits of the earth none is more highly esteemed than the
pomegranate, which was sculptured in temples of Mesopotamia and
embroidered on the robes of Assyrian and Jewish priests. In the days of
King Solomon it was cultivated in Palestine, where the Israelites, like
modern Persians, made a sherbet by mixing its juice with sugar and
spices. At the time of Homer it was cultivated in Phrygia. Now it grows
wild over vast tracts of Syria, Persia, and Asia Minor. Yet it rarely
appears conspicuously in any woven fabrics excepting the Ladik prayer
rugs, in which it is invariably seen. Since the weavers of these,
whether Christian or Moslem, would probably be familiar with many of the
old Jewish and Assyrian rites, it is not unlikely that it refers
emblematically to its religious associations rather than symbolises, as
has been suggested, the idea of fruitfulness as expressed in the Turkish
wedding custom where the bride throws a pomegranate at her feet that the
scattered seed may fore-tell the number of her children.
In almost every rug of Persia, India, and Asia Minor there is in some
part of the border a vine with pendant leaves, flowers, rosettes, or
palmettes; and even in many Caucasian rugs of geometric pattern the vine
with its appendages is seen in conventionalised form. In a few of the
more sumptuous carpets, where the drawing is elaborate, delicate
tendrils bearing flowers or the more formal designs of the Herati border
take the place of the vine, from which they were evolved. In such
borders the designs generally convey no symbolic meaning, but the
simpler vine encircling the field without beginning or end represents
symbolically the continuity of purpose and permanency.
One of the most interesting designs (Plate O, Fig. 6, Page 291) is known
as the Cone, Palm, Mango, Almond, River Loop, and Pear. By some it is
believed to represent no more than the closed palm of the hand, since
there is an old tradition in Persia that a weaver once asked his little
son to devise for him a new design, whereupon the boy thrust his hand
into a pot of dye, then placed it sidewise upon a piece of white linen,
on which became impressed the “palm” design formed by the hand and
incurving small finger. By some it is regarded as a cluster of old
Iranian crown jewels. To others, who point to the well-known pattern of
the Kashmir weaving, it denotes the bend of the river Jhelum above
Srinagar in the valley of Kashmir; and to Sir George Birdwood it
symbolises the flame sacred to ancient fire worshippers. In this work it
will be called the Pear, the name now generally applied to it. In the
course of the many centuries that have elapsed since its origin, and in
its migration through India, Persia, Turkestan, Caucasia, and Asia
Minor, it has adopted more strange shapes than any other device. In the
rugs of Sarabend it is represented in its best-known form of simple
curving lines, in the Bakus its identity is almost lost on account of
its geometric appearance, and in the fabrics of India it is often very
ornate. Though its origin is hidden in the mists of the past, when its
antiquity is considered, and also the devotion of the early races to the
glowing orb of the sun and to terrestrial fires, it is not surprising
that it has been regarded as a relic of the Zoroastrian faith of old
Iran, symbolising the eternal flames before which the Parsees
worshipped.
[Illustration: PLATE 13. COMPARTMENT CARPET IN THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM
OF ART, NEW YORK]
If the floral designs are more beautiful, others are more truly
symbolic, and when appearing in rugs of barbaric patterns they are more
interesting. Of these the creeping things are represented by the
serpent, scorpion, turtle, crab, and tarantula. Among a few races of
Asia the serpent, which is found in a few old Persian carpets, has been
regarded as emblematic of immortality, but has been more frequently
considered as the symbol of knowledge. The scorpion, also, was supposed
to represent the idea of knowledge. It does not often appear in woven
design, but is sometimes drawn with careful precision in Caucasian
fabrics. The turtle or tortoise stands for constancy. What is called the
“turtle border” (Plate E, Fig. 3, opp. Page 156), which was probably
derived from interlacing arabesques, occurs most frequently in Feraghans
and also in some other Persian rugs, as Muskabads, Sarabends, Serapis,
and even the Sehnas. The tarantula and crab designs are found
exclusively in borders of Caucasian rugs. As their resemblance to the
animals they are supposed to represent is remote, it is most probable
that they are simply the conventionalised forms of the star and
palmette.
Among the designs seen in Chinese rugs are several not found in any
others. Of these the dragon, originally intended as a symbol of the
infinite, denotes imperial power; the stork, long life; the duck,
conjugal felicity; the bat, happiness; and the butterfly, a spirit.
These designs will be noticed in the chapter on Chinese rugs.
With few exceptions the only modern rugs in which birds are represented
are the Persian. The drawing as a rule is far from natural; but in the
fine old carpets it is often so accurate as to show unmistakably the
order to which they belong. Several of them were used symbolically, as
the bird of paradise, suggestive of felicity; the peacock, symbol of
fire; the eagle, emblem of power. The attitude, to be sure, in which
they appear, affects in a measure their symbolic meaning; as an eagle in
flight denotes good fortune, but one in the act of descending denotes
ill luck.
As the Mohammedan religion interdicts portraying birds and beasts as
well as human forms, they are rarely seen in any rug of Western Asia
Minor, which is inhabited by the Sunnites, the strict conformists to the
law of the Koran; but in Mohammedan countries lying farther to the east,
where the Shiites or nonconformists live, animal designs are very
common. In modern rugs of Persia and Caucasia, dogs, goats, and camels
are the most popular animal subjects, but the drawing is often so poor
that the identity is in doubt. In the old carpets, on the other hand,
animals and human beings were most realistically drawn, and were
intended to represent symbolically the weaver’s thought. In fact, those
masterpieces of Persian art known as the “Hunting Carpets” would lose
much of their interest if their many forms of animal life were without
symbolic meaning. In them the lion is a symbol of victory, power, the
sun, and the day; the antelope and unicorn are symbols of restfulness
and the moon. The lion destroying an antelope would mean, then, the
victory of day over night, or of a powerful over a weak foe. Leopards
and hounds likewise symbolise success and fame. There are also
mythological creatures, as the phœnix, emblematic of life and
resurrection, and the winged _djinni_ or Persian spirits, that often
adorn the fields and borders of some of the elaborate antique carpets of
Iran.
Not only the forms of vegetable and animal life and their relative
attitudes to one another were intended to convey a symbolic meaning, but
among almost all ancient races colours had a special significance. To
the Moslems no colour was more sacred than the green, which, though
difficult to produce in beautiful tones, they have placed in the fields
of many of their prayer rugs. To them, also, blue was the emblem of
eternity, and in the spandrels above the arches it was the symbol of the
sky. Though to the Hindoo it denotes ill luck, it was the chosen colour
of the Persians, as well as one of the imperial colours of the Chinese.
Among all nations yellow, another imperial colour of China, and red are
suggestive of joy and happiness. Such colours, when used in conjunction
with other emblems, expressed not only beauty, but also different shades
of thought.
[Illustration: PLATE 14. PERSIAN ANIMAL CARPET IN THE METROPOLITAN
MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK]
These are but a few of the many motives that are employed by the weaver.
Some of them represent objects intimately associated with his daily
life. Some of them reflect his thoughts and emotions. Others are the
still unsolved hieroglyphics of his craft. When, then, we examine some
old worn rug, we may see only an exquisite pattern resplendent in the
deep rich colours of an art now lost; but if to an aesthetic taste be
added an interest in a symbolism that expresses something of the thought
and life of the weaver, we may find in the study of the various designs
another charm that increases with the discovery of any previously hidden
meaning.
CHAPTER VII
RUG WEAVING BEFORE THE XVIII CENTURY
THERE are no records to definitely indicate in what land the art of rug
weaving originated, or to disprove that it developed independently in
different lands. It would be unreasonable, then, to assume that rugs
were not woven in northern regions as early as in southern. In fact,
during the Neolithic age the Lake-dwellers of Switzerland grew and spun
flax, and it is believed that they had looms. Moreover, it is probable
that the savages of cold climates soon learned to weave garments with
the long wool of their sheep or goats; and the similar process of
weaving mats for the floors of their huts would naturally follow.
Nevertheless, such evidence as now remains points to the civilisations
of the Euphrates or the Nile, as the birthplace of this art.
Though we do not know when the first rugs were made, without a doubt
they existed before the pyramids of Egypt or the palaces of Babylon had
risen from the plains. Among the rock-cut tombs of Beni-Hassan in Egypt,
that date from about 2500 B. C. are pictures of men with spindles, of
looms and weavers. There is also unmistakable evidence of the antiquity
of a high state of the textile art among the ruins in the valleys of the
Tigris and the Euphrates. On carved walls of the palaces of Nineveh,
where dwelt the rulers of Assyria over three thousand years ago, are
elaborate drawings indicating that carpets of remarkable workmanship
were then in use. In the borders of some of the robes worn by the rulers
are designs of rosettes and latch-hooks, and on one is depicted the tree
of life, similar to what may be seen in modern rugs. Nor are ancient
writers silent. In the Old Testament are frequent references to woven
fabrics. Homer, also, speaks of them in his Odyssey. Herodotus,
Diodorus, Pliny, Strabo, in fact almost all classic writers have
mentioned them. Moreover, designs on pottery, bowls, tiles, and walls,
similar in appearance to those found in the oldest existing carpets,
carry contributory evidence to their antiquity and character.
This art, that necessity created, comfort nourished, and luxury matured,
has been a process of slow development. To the mind of some dark
tribeswoman of the desert contemplating the rushes gathered from a
sluggish stream and strewn upon the floor of her master’s hut several
thousand years ago, may have been suggested the first idea of a mat.
Indeed, from earliest times mats of reeds, straw, bamboo, or other
pliable material have been constantly made. At first they were doubtless
without ornament; later they were coloured with dyes obtained from roots
and herbs to increase their attractiveness; finally designs symbolic of
nature or the deity were embroidered on them. As wealth and luxury
increased the ornamentation became more elaborate, until during the rule
of the Caliphs the mats rivalled in beauty the carpets for which, during
the summer months, they were substituted. “On these mats,” wrote the
eminent authority, Dr. F. R. Martin, “the artist found free scope for
displaying as much artistic skill as on the real carpets, and gold
threads were intertwined to make them as precious as the most expensive
silk and gold carpets.” Long, however, before they had reached such a
high state of perfection, they would have suggested the idea of making
warmer and more durable floor coverings. The first of these was a simple
web of warp and woof; later they assumed a character not dissimilar to
the kilims now made in the lands of their origin. With further advance,
more elaborate carpets and tapestries were made; but it was not until
the art had been developing for a great many centuries, that there
appeared those most perfect products of knotted pile that were similar
in kind but superior in quality to the modern pieces.
Slow as was this development, as early as the Christian era, the work of
the most skilled weavers of the Orient deserved to be classed as a fine
art. During the time of the Sassanian kingdom (extending from about 226
A. D. to 632 A. D.) carpets of elaborate design and finish were produced
in Mesopotamia and Syria. Most of them were of the wool of sheep or
goats; and in them were represented designs of trees, birds, animals,
and other figures. Other pieces were made of silk richly embroidered
with silver and gold. Moreover, authentic evidence from the VI Century
A. D. not only gives us positive knowledge of the marvellous workmanship
of that time, but enables us to conjecture through what a long period
of progression the artisans had been labouring to arrive at such
results. Dr. Karabacek, director of the Imperial Library of Vienna, in
his monograph “Die Persische Nadelmalerei Susandschird,” gave the
following description of the “Spring of Chosroes” carpet:
“When Ctesiphon, the residence of the Sassanides, fell into the hands of
the Arabs in the year 637 A. D., they found in the royal palace, the
ruins of which still remain, a colossal carpet of 1051 square
metres,[11] which was originally made for Chosroes I. His successor,
Anoschar (531-579 A. D.), used it also, but only during the stormy
weather, when remaining in the gardens was impracticable. The
festivities were then transferred to the palace, where a garden with the
beauty of springtime was represented by the pattern of the carpet. This
was the Winter Carpet that was called in Persia the Spring of Chosroes.
Its material, which was marvellous and costly, consisted of silk, gold,
silver, and precious stones. On it was represented a beautiful pleasure
ground with brooks and interlacing paths, with trees and flowers of
springtime. On the wide borders surrounding it were represented
flower-beds in which precious stones coloured blue, red, yellow, white,
and green denoted the beauty of the flowers. Gold imitated the
yellow-coloured soil and defined the borders of the brooks, where the
water was represented by crystals. Gravel paths were indicated by stones
of the size of pearls. The stalks of trees were of gold and silver, the
leaves and flowers of silk, the fruits of many-coloured stones.”
As the value of this carpet was estimated at about three quarters of a
million dollars, it was regarded as too precious to fall to the lot of a
single captor, and was accordingly divided into segments to be
distributed as booty among the soldiers. Even if during this period
there was no other fabric so valuable and elaborate, it represented the
importance of the textile art during the dynasty of the Sassanides.
[Illustration: PLATE 15. PERSIAN ANIMAL CARPET IN THE METROPOLITAN
MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK]
During the Caliphate (632 to 1258 A. D.) the Moslem rulers, devoted to
luxury, preserved the art treasures of their conquered subjects and
encouraged them to renewed efforts. This is particularly true of the
Caliphs and sultans of Syria and Egypt. A carpet that adorned the
banquet hall of the Caliph Hisham of Egypt, who died 743 A. D., was of
silk interwoven with strands of gold, and had a length of three hundred
feet and a breadth of one hundred and fifty feet. All of the rooms of
the Egyptian palaces, occupied by the sultans, contained carpets of silk
and satin; and the mosques of Syria were similarly furnished. In the
year 1067 A. D. one of the Caliphs was forced to sell his accumulated
treasures, which consisted, besides jewels and works of art, of about
four thousand bales of carpets. Dr. Martin states that a single one of
these bales contained several hundred perfect carpets, which were woven
in silk and gold, and that some of them contained portraits of entire
royal families. One of them, valued at about $300,000, was made for the
Caliph el Mirz li alla in the year 964 A. D. It was of blue silk, on
which were represented the heavens and the earth, seas and rivers, as
well as the holy cities Mecca and Medina. Such was the character of some
of the carpets woven during the days of the Caliphs.
As the imperfect records which have been left us indicate that the
finest carpet collections of this period were in the mosques and palaces
of Syria and Egypt, it has been assumed that they were woven by the
native artisans. To some extent this is doubtless true, as rug weaving
was one of the oldest industries of these countries. But it is more
probable that most of them were made elsewhere and were acquired as
presents or by purchase. Some were made in Armenia, Assyria, and
Turkestan; but the largest number, as well as the most costly and
elaborate, doubtless came from the same hills and towns of Persia where
many of the finest pieces are woven to-day. In several of these towns as
many as three or four hundred looms were constantly at work; and since
the carpets consisted of warp and weft only, it is probable that they
were produced far more rapidly than modern rugs in which knots are tied
to the warp. But if they lacked the richness of deep, heavy pile, they
were elaborately woven with threads of gold and silver, and were often
embellished with precious stones.
ANTIQUE PERSIAN CARPETS
To the tendency of overestimating the age of art objects to which
antiquity adds value, there is no exception in the case of Oriental
rugs, yet there is good reason to believe that a few pieces still exist
that were woven in Persia as early as the XIII or XIV Century. Indeed,
we cannot positively affirm that there may not be religiously preserved
some relic of the Seljukian dynasty, which ruled in Persia till about
1150 A. D., for we have little knowledge of what some of the old mosques
which no Christian has ever entered may contain; but it is more probable
that the oldest remaining pieces belong to the Mongolian period, which
began with the invasion of the armies of Genghis Khan in the first half
of the XIII Century. This conclusion is based partly on the facts that
their archaic patterns indicate a very remote period, and that they
suggest early Mongolian influences. Moreover, as the age of rugs of a
somewhat later period can be determined by the evidence of similarity of
their designs with those of early tiles, metal work, pottery, and
miniatures, of established age, it is possible to infer the relative age
of these older pieces by comparison of patterns showing a progressive
development.
One of the oldest Persian pieces now existing, the property of C. F.
Williams, Esq., of Norristown, Pa., is in the Metropolitan Museum of Art
of New York (Plate 11, opp. Page 64). It is also one of the most
interesting. In it are found Persian, Armenian, Caucasian, and Mongolian
characteristics, which serve to determine the district where it was
woven and to suggest its age. Its Sehna knot, cotton warp and weft, as
well as much of the drawing, are typical of Persia. The tri-cleft leaf
and stem seen in the two lower corners, in the main stripe, and in parts
of the field are found in almost all Armenian rugs. The reciprocal
sawtooth of the outer border stripe and the geometric inner stripe are
Caucasian features. Certain colour tones, the octagonal discs at each
end of the large central palmettes, and more particularly the tendrils
or scrolls of the main stripe of the border which resemble the foliate
forms as they appear in Chinese rugs and porcelains of the late Ming and
Kang-hi periods, are Mongolian. The combination of these characteristics
indicates that it was made in the most northwesterly part of Persia
where in 1258 Hulaku Khan established his capital, and his successors
ruled for over a century. Here undoubtedly the craft of weaving
flourished for a long period, and exercised an important influence on
the surrounding countries. To judge by the colours; the formal character
of the border; the rigid lines of the large palmette motives of the
field, which are not seen in carpets of a much later period; and the
stiff, archaic character of the bushes with foliage and blossoms
arranged mechanically on the thick trunks, it is not unreasonable to
place this piece as early as the middle of the XIV Century, during the
interval between the overthrow of the Seljukian dynasty by the followers
of Genghis Khan and the later invasion of the Timurids. In fact, it
may be even older, since those graceful lines that belong to the highest
art of a subsequent period are entirely lacking. But in the drawing is
strength, and in the colours, a few of which have faded, are beauty and
harmony.
[Illustration: PLATE 16. PERSIAN ANIMAL CARPET IN THE METROPOLITAN
MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK]
Such old pieces are very rare, yet a similar one, belonging to Prof. W.
Bode, is in the Kaiser Friedrich Museum at Berlin. Its drawing is more
regular, and the trunks of the trees are broader. These two carpets
represent the art of weaving at a very early period.
Of equal interest and higher artistic merit is another carpet (Plate 12,
opp. Page 68), belonging to C. F. Williams, Esq., and at present in the
Metropolitan Museum of Art but formerly in the possession of J. Böhler
of Munich. It has a length of nearly seventeen feet and a breadth of
nearly twelve. There are about three hundred knots to the square inch.
Though much of that stiffness of drawing found in the earlier pieces
remains, the more pliant branches and less regular setting of the
flowers indicate a later date; so that it is not improbable that it was
woven about the first of the XV Century. Dr. Martin regards this piece
as one of the oldest of the Timurid period if not from the Mongolian,
and says that the trees resemble those in a Mongolian miniature in the
Musée des Arts Decoratifs in Paris, and in a manuscript from the year
1396. At any rate, they display more formal drawing than the trees of
more recent carpets. The character of pattern and the colouring suggest
that it was woven in Northwestern Persia.
The field is skilfully divided into three subfields by beds of flowers,
from which slender trees rise and partly screen from view more stately
cypresses. The subdivisions are further indicated by pairs of palmettes,
of which the upper pair mark a transition between the lower pair and
those more elegant forms commonly seen two centuries later. There are
likewise palmettes of simpler form in the two guard stripes. But the
principal ornamentation of the rich border is the interlacing arabesques
of three different colours, which are decorated with a slender wreath of
leaf and flower. There is, moreover, a particular interest in the
grouping of the arabesques since they form a design which may be the
prototype of the so-called turtle borders so frequently seen in
Feraghans and Gorevans, and is itself derived, according to Dr. Martin,
from a still older form in which branching arabesques extend across the
whole field. It may not be unreasonable to assume that this pattern has
been handed down from that earlier period when a Saracenic influence was
felt in all the weavings.
If the chief interest in this piece is centred in the pattern, its
greatest charm lies in its soft, dainty colours, some of which are
exquisitely beautiful. They are expressed in delicate shades of orange,
ivory, light green, sable brown, and light and dark blue on a
background of pinkish red. This pattern and colouring suggest an
Eastern wood when the first frost of autumn has left its touch on the
leaves. The border contains the same colours as the field but is strong
and effective, since the soft tones are in the narrow guard stripes and
the deeper colours appear in the broad central stripe in larger masses
and in immediate contact.
If this carpet was woven about 1400 A. D., as seems not improbable, the
drawing of the trees, palmettes, and border designs becomes by
comparison an important guide for determining the age of other antique
Persian carpets.
Very different, indeed, from the preceding is a woollen piece (Plate 13,
opp. Page 70), sixteen feet four inches long by eleven feet two inches
wide, that was formerly in the collection of Mr. Vincent Robinson of
London, but is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, which
bought it at the Yerkes sale in 1910, for $19,600. It has about six
hundred knots to the square inch, and is woven with warp of cotton and
silk, and with weft of silk. The pile is velvety, and the texture,
drawing, and colouring display a high grade of artistic craftsmanship.
Another of similar character is represented in the Vienna Publication of
Oriental Carpets of 1889, at which time it belonged to the Countess
Clotilde Clam-Gallas of Vienna; and a third belongs to the Palais de
Commerce at Lyons.
In no other rugs from Iran is the effect of Mongolian tradition on
design more noticeable; but that this was due to the Timurid invasion at
the end of the XIV Century is doubtful, and it is not improbable that
more immediate intervention with China determined the motives. Nor is
the Saracenic influence obscured, since in every part of the field and
border is seen the perfect rhythm of graceful arabesques. Such carpets
represent, in fact, the transition from those earlier pieces to the
higher products of Persian looms.
[Illustration: PLATE 17. SO-CALLED POLISH OR POLONAISE CARPET IN THE
METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK]
One of the simplest ways of studying the pattern is to regard it as
consisting of a number of units formed by a large rounded octagon
encircled by eight heart-shaped escutcheons, and with a smaller
rounded octagon at the centre of the diagonal lines connecting them. On
the large octagons, which are of dark blue crossed by narrow bands of
sable brown, is represented the fight of dragon and phœnix so common
in the ornamentation of the Ming dynasty; and in the smaller octagons,
which are plum colour, are four running lions in red, blue, and green.
The eight escutcheons alternate in crimson and blue, and have arabesques
and Chinese ducks. The large pentagonal-shaped areas of the ivory field
are covered with a most symmetrically drawn tracery of tendrils and
flowers in red, yellow, and blue; and in the smaller hexagonal-shaped
areas are cloud bands of similar colours.
The border shows a marked advance over that of the preceding piece. The
main stripe, which follows a pattern that with slight modification is
adopted in many of the carpets of this and a later period, consists of a
chain-like series of octagons similar to those of the field, separating
elongated panels with crenated edges. The latter are adorned with cloud
bands in yellow interlaced with delicate tendrils supporting flowers in
red, yellow, green, and white, on a dark blue field; and surrounding
them on a red ground is also a delicate tracery of leaves and flowers.
The outer and inner stripes have arabesques and tendrils bearing flowers
in red, green, and blue on a ground of golden yellow. All the colours of
both field and border have mellowed into rich, beautiful hues in which
is the most perfect harmony.
The intricacy and character of design, the delicacy of drawing, and the
tones of colour indicate that this piece was woven near the beginning of
the Safavid dynasty, in the early part of the XVI Century. Mr. Robinson
ascribes its origin to Bagdad; but it seems far more probable that it
came from the northwestern part of Persia, which was an important centre
of textile art only a few years later. This piece and the two others
described on the pages just preceding are among the most interesting
carpets now existing; for they represent not only a very high standard
of the textile craft, but also most important steps in its development.
There is no evidence to indicate how early animal carpets were woven in
Persia. Dr. Martin found a piece with archaic drawing, that from its
resemblance to an old tile of established age, he placed at about the
year 1300 A. D.; but it was about the beginning of the XVI Century that
were woven the first of those masterly pieces which displayed animals
surrounded by a maze of floral life. Lions, leopards, boars, deer, and
hounds were the principal motives. To each of these was ascribed some
principle or quality, so that it has been assumed that the aim of the
weaver was to give expression to some theme of interest.
A number of these carpets represent the chase and are called “Hunting
Carpets.” The best of them are regarded by Dr. Martin as belonging to
the latter half of the XVI Century for reasons indicated in the
following extract from his work: “The manuscript of Nizami, one of the
pearls of the British Museum, which was executed in Tabriz 1539-1542 for
the Shah Tamasp, has the most wonderful designs on the margins. Although
the manuscripts and the miniatures are signed by Persia’s most renowned
masters, there is nothing to give a hint as to who has drawn these
magnificent borders. This manuscript, which at the time it was written,
was considered one of the most remarkable ‘the like of which the eye of
time never beheld,’ plainly proves that the large carpets with hunting
scenes must be relegated to a later time or to about 1560-1570. Both
animals and trees are of a far more stately and earlier character in the
manuscript.”
One of the best of these pieces with animals (Plate 14, opp. Page 72) is
in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York, by which it was
purchased at the Yerkes sale in 1910, for $15,200. It has a length of
ten feet eleven inches with a breadth of five feet ten inches, and an
average of four hundred and eighty knots to the square inch. Both warp
and weft are of silk, and the pile is of wool. As it was confidently
believed by Mr. Edward Stebbing[12] that this piece belonged for a long
time to the Mosque of Ardebil, where Ismael had established his capital,
and from which Tamasp subsequently moved; it is not improbable that it
belongs to the early period, between the closing years of Ismael’s reign
and the first part of the reign of Tamasp.[13] Nor is there anything in
the technique of colour or design to convey a different impression, as
the general colour of the field is a claret red, and that of the border
a dark blue characteristic of this period.
The most noticeable feature of the carpet is the display of animal life
amid the carefully balanced arrangement of floral figures. Four-fifths
of the field can be divided into two perfect squares with sides equal to
the breadth of the field; and the remainder will be equivalent to
one-half of one of these squares. Each quarter of a square contains
animals, probably intended to represent a lion, leopard, and boar, that
are perfectly balanced with those of the adjacent and alternating
quarters. Moreover, the same balance exists in the case of the smaller
animals and floral forms. Thus it appears that each square forms a
perfect unit in which is shown a remarkable relation between all parts.
Such mathematical exactness indicates the highest artistic skill. The
repetition of pattern also accentuates the predominant idea of animal
life, which is rendered even more noticeable by the strong golden yellow
of some of the group. Whoever has studied the early Iranian monuments
remembers with how slight variation some of the drawing has been copied
during subsequent generations; so that it is not surprising that Mr.
Stebbing should call attention to the resemblance of some of the animals
in this carpet to those of the rock-carved sculptures of Tak-i-Bostan
near Kermanshah.
As is the case with most modern Persian rugs, there is no correspondence
between the size of the animals and the flowers. Nevertheless the lack
of harmony is not felt, as the animal and the floral life are intended
to be regarded separately. The principal flowers of the field are
peonies, some of which are woven with silver threads. They also appear
in the border arranged with perfect precision within the folds of
symmetrical cloud-bands and interlacing arabesques. The latter form a
well-executed repetitive figure that suggests an origin for the
reciprocal trefoil or lily pattern, as it is sometimes called, which
received its highest development in the silk rugs of a later century.
On the whole, this piece is not far short of the highest sumptuary
standard of a subsequent period, and is an excellent example of the
artistic development of the earliest part of the Safavid dynasty. In few
other carpets is combined such intricacy of design with richness and
simplicity of colour.
Of still greater interest than the last is the Arbedil Carpet, now in
the South Kensington Museum. It has a length of thirty-four and a half
feet with a breadth of seventeen and a half; the texture shows about
three hundred and twenty-five knots to the square inch; and the pile is
of wool tied to warp and weft of silk. It has been very carefully
studied by Mr. Edward Stebbing, from whose description the following
extracts are taken:
“The body ground is blue, covered with a floral tracery of exquisite
delicacy and freedom of treatment. A central medallion of pale yellow
terminates on its outer edge in sixteen minaret-shaped points from which
spring sixteen cartouches; four green, four red, and eight light cream;
and from two of these again, as it were, suspended and hanging in the
direction of the respective ends of the carpet, two of the sacred lamps
of the mosque.
“Quarter sections of the central medallion also on a pale yellow ground,
relieved by tracery, form the angles; while a broader border completes
the glorious design, a border of the alternate elongated and rounded
cartouches filled with floral and other tracery, the former on a base of
red, the latter on a rich brown ground flanked on the inner side by a
broad band of cream seven inches wide, relieved by a variation of a
so-called cloud pattern, and a narrower band of crimson near the body of
the carpet; and on the outer side by a single broad band, also seven
inches wide, of tawny hue, shading from dark to light, and relieved by a
bold design in blue.”
But however exquisite the tracery, however delicate the colouring, the
greatest interest centres in the fact that in a panel adjoining the
border of the upper end is the following inscription:
“I have no refuge in the world other than thy threshold;
“My head has no protection other than thy porchway;
“The work of the slave of the holy place, Maksoud of Kashan,
in the year 946.”
Here is revealed the age of the carpet, which not only determines the
character of workmanship of a particular period, but affords a standard
for determining by comparison the relative age of other pieces. The year
946 corresponds with our year 1540 A. D., and the position of the date
indicates that it was inscribed a little before the completion of the
fabric. Accordingly, it would not be unreasonable to assume that the
carpet was begun during the closing years of the reign of Ismael, who
died at Ardebil in 1524, and that it was finished during the reign of
Tamasp I.
To infer that at this period were many such carpets would be a mistake;
since this was doubtless woven by the order of the court, and by one of
the most skilled artisans, who may have made it the crowning labour of
his life. It indicates the highest technique acquired in the early part
of the Safavid dynasty.
[Illustration: PLATE 18. SO-CALLED ISPAHAN IN THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF
ART, NEW YORK]
Besides the mosque carpets, other pieces such as small prayer rugs were
used for devotional purposes. When the first of them were made is
unknown, though they existed in the days of the Caliphs, when the
words of the Prophet were still fresh in the memories of his followers;
and they were also used at an early period among Turkomans. The oldest
that remain belong to the early part of the Safavid rule. One that was
formerly in the collection of Stefano Bardini of Florence and is now
owned by Mr. Benjamin Altman, appeared at the exhibit of the
Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1910. It is a woollen piece with a length
of nearly five and a half feet and a breadth of three and a quarter. In
the central field is a prayer arch resembling some of a later period,
with outlines gracefully recurving near the base and broken on each side
by a pentagonal-shaped flower. All parts of each of the two trees that
rise from the bottom of the field are reversely duplicated in the other.
Some of the stiffness of drawing of the earlier carpets remains, but the
blossoms are clustered more naturally and the whole treatment is more
skilful. The effect of the scroll-work on the red ground of the
spandrel; of the suspended lamp with its bright flowers of red, yellow,
and pink; and of the blossoming trees beneath, is most pleasing; but the
chief interest centres in the outer border stripe, where appear features
that are more interesting than harmonious, features derived from Persia,
Assyria, Mongolia, and Arabia. The rounded octagons have Cufic lettering
that recalls early Mesopotamian civilisation; the cartouches at the
bottom with their cloud-bands suggest Mongolian conquests; and the upper
cartouches contain the following verses from the Koran:
“Iman the victorious and expected Mahdi, the Lord of the Age.
Zalsi and Hason; and bless the standing proof.
Oh Lord bless Mohammed the chosen one. Ali, the elect, Fatimeh the
Immaculate.
Jofer Sadik, Mooza Kazin, Ali Riza Mohammed Taki, Mohammed Nakee, Ali.
The two branches Harson and Hussein Bless Ali Zaimulubbad Mohammed
Bak’r.”
These verses, the archaic lamp, and the green of the field, a colour
sacred to Moslems, all indicate the religious character of the carpet.
Similar features also appear in another antique piece of about the same
age, but the Cufic characters of the border are within squares
surrounded by circles that resemble Chinese seals as they appear in
early manuscripts. Both of these pieces were probably woven in
Northwestern Persia about the middle of the XVI Century. Few such prayer
carpets remain, though without doubt they were used by devotees during
succeeding periods, and it is not unusual to see, even in modern
Kermanshahs, prayer arches of the same pattern.
Of totally different character but of about the same age is an animal
rug (Plate 15, opp. Page 76) that belongs to the Metropolitan Museum of
Art. It was bought at the Yerkes sale in 1910, for $5,600, and had
previously belonged to the collection of Vincent Robinson of London. It
has a length of about seven and a half feet with a breadth of about five
and a half, and consists of woollen pile tied to cotton warp crossed by
woollen weft. The weave is not unlike what is seen in many modern
Sarouks; as the knot is Sehna, one thread of warp is doubled under the
other in each knot, and the coloured thread of weft, which crosses
twice, is partly exposed at the back.
Like so many of the old Persian pieces, the ground colour of red appears
in the main field, and is strongly contrasted with the dark blue of the
medallion and dark green of the corners. Red and green also appear in
the border contrasted with yellow. This association of colour is not
usual, nor is the repetitive pattern of the border with its sharp cusps
at many of the angles, nor the trapeziform corners, and the nearly
rectangular medallion. Likewise the mechanically formed bushes with
their quince-like fruit, on which sit birds of disproportionate size,
show a departure from the accepted traditions of the Safavid schools.
Yet these very features awaken new interest, and suggest that it was
probably woven in some part of Northern or Western Persia where the
influence of the court was not paramount. Nevertheless the accurate
balance of the different halves, and the drawing of the palmettes show
that it is distinctly Iranian.
If this last piece be compared with the animal rug (Plate 16, opp. Page
78) that was presented to the Metropolitan Museum of Art by Mr. Cochran,
the wide contrast will at once be noticeable. As the latter has a length
of about eight and two-thirds feet with a breadth of nearly six, the
difference in size and proportions is not great; nor is there any
particular difference in the number of animals; nor in the balanced
relation of upper and lower, right and left halves; nor in the red
ground of the main fields. But here the resemblance ends. Whereas in the
former the animals are one of the most prominent features, in the latter
they are subordinate to the rich assemblage of floral and palmette
forms, that occupy not only the field but also the border. It is,
indeed, a piece that marks a transition from the animal rugs, so
prominent in the early part of the XVI Century but rarely woven later
than its end, to the more elegant pieces, so characteristic of the court
of Ispahan, which belong almost exclusively to the XVII Century. It
accordingly seems not without reason to assign it to about the year
1600.
[Illustration: PLATE 19. ARMENIAN CARPET IN THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF
ART, NEW YORK]
Not only do these different elements that denote a transition add
interest; they also give a most pleasing effect. The main border stripe
of a rich green with its well-drawn palmettes surrounded by vines and
foliated stalks, on which rest naturally drawn birds of handsome
plumage, and the chaste floral designs of the narrow guards, serve as a
tasteful frame to the central picture. Here again the outer field, with
artistic effect, brings into greater relief the central medallion, where
on a ground of greenish yellow, standing and seated amidst blossoming
shrubs in red, blue, and green, as in a garden, are richly dressed human
forms. Apart from these, yet perhaps intended in some way to reflect the
tenor of their thoughts, are four ducks, emblematic of matrimonial
happiness. Whatever may have been the original shade of the central
medallion, it is now slightly out of harmony with the surrounding
colours, and is perhaps the only jarring note in this exquisite piece of
workmanship. Not improbably the present shade is due to the unfriendly
hand of time, since the artistic genius of the weaver is fully displayed
in the masterly arrangement of other colours and in the delicacy and
precision of the drawing of the perfectly balanced floral and animal
forms.
The difficulty of determining the locality where the antique carpets
were woven is often greater than in the case of modern rugs, but this
piece was probably one of the last of those fine old animal carpets that
were woven in the northwestern part of Persia.
Though modern silk rugs fail to awaken the interest of woollen pieces,
the old silk carpets were formerly regarded as the choicest products of
weaving. As a rule, they were the work of the most skilled artists
employed in the imperial factory under the direction and patronage of
the court. It was during the reign of Shah Tamasp that they received
special attention. Following a custom that had been in vogue of sending
carpets as presents to foreign courts, in 1566 he sent to the Sultan of
Constantinople a number of pieces on which flowers, birds, and animals
were woven with silk on threads of gold. But it was doubtless after his
successor Shah Abbas I had begun to embellish his capital at Ispahan,
that were made the famous “Polish” silk or “Polonaise” carpets about
which there has been so much controversy. It is true that Mr. Robinson
in his “Eastern Carpets” claims that they were woven in Poland by
Persians taken there by a Pole named Mersherski; but it seems far more
probable that they were woven under the supervision of the Persian court
and were either sent as presents to European sovereigns or purchased by
wealthy connoisseurs of art.
How many of these pieces may be hidden away in the palaces and mosques
of the far East it is impossible to determine, but two hundred would be
a very conservative estimate of the number owned by the different courts
of Europe and by private collectors of that country and America. One of
them was presented to the Danish court as late as 1639; and it is
believed that all that reached Europe arrived there between the years
1604 and 1650.
Their beauty is exquisite and chaste. To the threads of silver and gold
is tied silken nap that often displays a striking brilliancy. Unlike the
earlier Persian carpets which had more subdued hues, these pieces have
light tones such as salmon, rose, and green, which are arranged with
perfect harmony. Moreover, there is an elegance of design representing
the highest types of Iranian, Saracenic, and Mongolian influences
combined. Here in perfection are dainty floral forms, the rhythmic
tracery of arabesques, and delicate cloud-bands. In them the textile art
of the East reached a perfection that probably has never been surpassed.
One of these (Plate 17, opp. Page 80), that has a length of about nine
feet and a breadth of five and a half, belongs to the Metropolitan
Museum of Art. In many respects it is typical of its class, though
threads of yellow and grey are substituted for the usual gold and silver
of the foundation. On a field of rose are outlined palmettes, leaves,
and scrolls in green, blue, brown, and salmon, that harmonise with the
light blue of the border. All of these colours blend with pleasing
effect and soften lines that in a print seem harsh. Furthermore with all
its complexity of detail, every part of the pattern is arranged with
mathematical precision. That a carpet with such perfect balance of every
part, such intricacy of elaborate detail, such graceful curves of the
heavy foliate leaves should be woven without copying some older pattern
or a carefully executed drawing, seems improbable.
[Illustration: PLATE 20. ASIA MINOR DRAGON AND PHOENIX CARPET IN THE
KAISER FRIEDRICH MUSEUM, BERLIN]
In this piece and in others of the same class can be recognised what is
probably the prototype of more conventionalised and less elegant
designs so often seen in modern Persian pieces, since the palmette with
encircling lancet leaves in its borders is most suggestive of the
borders of modern Herats; and the rhomboidal-shaped figure connecting
four palmettes at the centre is equally suggestive of the Herati or fish
pattern seen in the field of innumerable Feraghans.
It was also during the reign of Shah Abbas[14] and his immediate
successors that most of the so-called Ispahans were woven, though some
of them appeared as early as the XV and some as late as the close of the
XVII Century. As in the case with the Polish silk carpets, within recent
years some difference of opinion has existed regarding the place of
their manufacture. After careful research, Dr. Martin believes that they
came from Herat and with this idea some other authorities concur. It is
true that Herat belonged to the Persian Empire during the reign of the
Safavid dynasty, and that even in the days of Shah Ismael magnificent
carpets were woven there. It is also true that during the time of Tamasp
and Abbas it was as important an art centre as Tabriz, and that the
weaving of carpets was a leading industry there. Furthermore, there has
not been found the same evidence to show that Ispahan was at this period
an equally important centre of weaving. On the other hand, it is well
known that the splendid industrial and art products of this period were
largely due to the direct encouragement and favour of the court, and
that the court was for most of the time at Ispahan. It is also known
that skilled artisans were repeatedly removed from one district to
another at the command of a sovereign, so that carpets of similar
character might be woven contemporaneously in remote parts of Persia. It
accordingly seems not improbable that the original type of these carpets
was evolved at Herat and that many of them at least were made at Herat,
but that others were also made at Ispahan. At any rate they were made to
a great extent under the influence that emanated from Ispahan.
Almost without exception they are pieces of large size and oblong shape.
The ground colour of the field is usually red, the border blue; but blue
is occasionally used in the field and green in the border. Their
distinguishing feature is the use of the palmette, that was probably
derived from the lotus, so frequently associated with the Buddhist cult
of India and China. In the field it generally occurs in pairs that
slightly vary in size. Of almost equal importance are the Chinese
cloud-bands and the scrolls or arabesques. These three designs were
constant motives in almost all the Ispahans; but they were subject to
modifications in size and shape, which appearing in chronological order
furnish some guide to the time when the carpets were woven. For
instance, the palmettes were at first small and distributed plentifully
over the field; later they became larger, until in a few instances they
were a yard in diameter. Dr. Martin says that in the first part of the
XVII Century the palmettes began to be very large and the richness of
the interior design to disappear; until at the end of the XVII Century
only a few were sufficient to cover the ground that one hundred years
before was almost hidden by innumerable designs of small palmettes,
cloud-bands, and scroll work. He also states that towards the middle of
the XVII Century the borders began to lose their importance and that the
palmettes were surrounded by two long, narrow leaves.
Though most of the antique Iranian carpets that remain were woven in the
Northern provinces, it is well known that even from earliest times
carpets of elaborate design and skilful technique were also woven in
Southern Persia. In fact, many of the wonderful pieces that adorned the
palaces and mosques of the Fatimid Caliphs of Egypt came from the
districts of Fars and Kirman. The latter, notwithstanding invasions of
Seljukian Turks, Mongolians, and Afghans, has continued almost
uninterruptedly as a centre of the textile industry; yet comparatively
few pieces exist that were woven there three or four centuries ago.
Their colour scheme harmonises more with that of the carpets of Western
Persia than with the more sombre tones of the old animal carpets and
Ispahans, or with the brighter hues of the so-called Polish. Their
patterns also show a distinction from those of northern textile fabrics.
The fields are often artificially divided, by foliate stalks or
lance-shaped leaves with serrated edges, into rhomboidal figures that
contain mechanically drawn shrubs, palmettes, or flowers. In the main
stripe of the border are generally represented interlacing arabesques
adorned with flowering vines or arabesques and a sub-pattern of vines.
Mongolian designs are rarely seen in any of these pieces, which probably
represent more closely than any other Persian carpets native art
unaffected by foreign influences. Almost all of them are now owned in
Europe.
Of the early rugs, those woven in Armenia are far less known than those
from Persia. Nevertheless, it may reasonably be assumed that the high
culture that was manifested in Bagdad and Ctesiphon during the sway of
the Caliphs was felt among the mountainous districts to the north; and
that the Seljukian rulers, who left such artistic monuments in the old
Armenian capitals, appreciated and encouraged the manufacture of fine
woollen fabrics. In fact, Marco Polo, who travelled through that region
during the latter part of the XIII Century, referred to them as being
remarkably handsome.
Probably the oldest remaining pieces are the so-called Dragon carpets,
which, it is believed, were produced from the XIV to the XVII Century
and possibly even earlier. Not infrequently the length is at least twice
the breadth; the very narrow border occasionally consists of only a
single stripe; and the field is occupied by a trellis-like pattern of
narrow, conventionalised leaves, within which are designs containing
archaic flowers and dragons. The ground colour of the field is generally
some shade of red, that of the border white, and the leaves are yellow,
blue, or green. In the borders of many of them appear an S motive from
which undoubtedly was derived the design so frequently seen in panels of
more recent Asia Minor prayer rugs.
In the Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York is a XV Century carpet
(Plate 19, opp. Page 86), which, though widely differing from these
pieces in general pattern, so closely resembles them in the essential
characteristics of weave and colour that it is unquestionably of the
same class. The field is occupied by concentric diamonds with stepped
sides. The encircling bands, that are mostly red, yellow, and violet,
and the corners, that are white, contain numerous archaic forms,
including palmettes, trees, birds, and animals. There are also numerous
small designs of the tri-cleft leaf so common to the Circassian and
Soumak rugs; and the ray-like edges of the central lozenge, as well as
the four palmettes that rest upon it, suggest the origin of the
effulgent stars of old Daghestans and Kabistans. An effort has been made
to balance similar designs in corresponding parts of the field, though
its centre is at one side of the geometric centre of the diamonds. The
palmettes show distinctly a strong Persian influence and the animal
forms likewise show that it was not woven by a sectarian Sunnite of
Western Asia Minor.
Part of a very unusual carpet (Plate 20, opp. Page 88), from a district
in Eastern Asia Minor, is in the Kaiser Friedrich Museum at Berlin. Its
principal interest lies in the fact that it is very old and that its
approximate age has been determined. In the hospital at Siena, Italy, a
similar rug is represented in a fresco called the “Wedding of the
Foundling,” painted by Domenico di Bartolo about the year 1440, so that
it is reasonable to conclude that this particular piece was woven not
much later. In fact, its character would indicate that it or some other
from which it has been copied was much older. Each of the nearly square
compartments contain octagons, within which on a yellow field are
represented the mythical fight of the dragon and phœnix that was
adopted as the Ming coat of arms. It is interesting to note that the
chain pattern of the brownish-black main border stripe is not unlike
what is seen in modern pieces, but the running latch hooks of the
corners and the small S designs are unusually stiff. This disposition to
formal drawing, which is conspicuous in all parts of the rug, shows an
archaic style noticeable only in the very earliest carpets.
In the celebrated painting of Georg Gyze (Plate 21, opp. Page 92) which
hangs in the Berlin Gallery, is represented a rug of a class so
frequently seen in the paintings of Hans Holbein that they are known as
“Holbein rugs.” Their marked dissimilarity to those previously described
indicates that they were woven under different circumstances if not in
different regions. Neither in the fields nor borders is any trace of
Mongolian or Persian influences; and the absence of all floral, leaf,
and animal forms so usual in most antique carpets is noticeable. Indeed,
the fact that animal forms rarely appear in the art of the Sunni
Mohammedans aids in determining the place of their origin. They came
from Asia Minor or Western Armenia.
It has generally been assumed that they were woven in Western Asia
Minor, because they were purchased there in former centuries and taken
thence to Europe; but they possess many features that indicate they may
have been woven farther to the east, whence many could easily have been
transported westward in caravans. Their borders contain the well-known
pattern derived from Cufic letters which, more conventionalised, appears
in later years only in such rugs as the Kabistans and Daghestans of
Eastern Caucasia. Most of them also contain the small octagonal discs
and larger octagonal figures with Greek crosses at the centre that
suggest forcibly the designs of Southeastern Caucasia. The narrow
stripes of ribbon and chain pattern found in many of them also are
very common in Caucasian rugs; so that it seems not improbable that
these Holbein rugs were made within the boundaries of that greater
Armenia which, embracing the upper Mesopotamian valley, extended over
the eastern part of Asia Minor and the southern part of modern Caucasia.
[Illustration: PLATE 21. PORTRAIT OF GEORG GYZE BY HANS HOLBEIN, SHOWING
A HOLBEIN RUG WITH CUFIC BORDER]
These rugs claim the attention not only because they have borders of
such interesting origin, but by the fact that the age when they were
woven is ascertainable. As Holbein lived between the years 1497 and
1543, and some other rugs of this type appear in the works of early
Flemish and Italian painters, it may reasonably be assumed that some of
them were made before the end of the XV Century.
A very excellent example of this class, owned by Mr. C. F. Williams, is
now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It has a length of about five
feet with a breadth of three and a half. The ground colour of the field
is an olive green and that of the main stripe of the border is red. The
prevailing colours of the designs, which are entirely geometric, are
blue, green, and ivory. All of these rugs are small or of moderate size,
and are slightly oblong. Some of them have a ground colour of green; and
yellow is frequently found in the pattern. The weaving is rather loose;
and compared with Persian rugs they have fewer knots to the square inch.
Another carpet from Asia Minor that also belongs to Mr. C. F. Williams
appears in Plate 22, opp. Page 94. It is the only entire rug with this
pattern that is known, though a piece of a similar rug is in the
Victoria and Albert Museum at London. On fields of blue and red are
outlined three large four-pointed stars separated by smaller diamonds.
Within these figures and in the surrounding field is a network of
tracery supporting conventionalised leaf and floral forms. Between the
field and the main stripe of the narrow border is a close co-ordination
of pattern, but the simple ribbon of the inner guard seems alien. It
appears without modification in many later Asia Minor and Caucasian
rugs.
An important feature are the double knots at the corners of the stars,
since they are identical with designs found in a manuscript made for one
of the Shahs in 1435, and thus assist to determine the age of the rug.
For this reason and on account of its general character, it seems not
unreasonable to place it as early as the middle of the XV Century.
Similar carpets were woven during a long period, and it is probable that
in the latter half of the following century they were largely influenced
by the weavers that Solyman the Magnificent, after capturing Tabriz in
1534, transported to his own country. The same general features still
remained, but the detail was more elaborate and ornate. Arabesques,
palmettes, and floral forms, both of field and border, resembled more
nearly the Iranian character. But at a later period, after the beginning
of the general decadence to which every industry and art were subject,
the patterns became much simpler, and the colours were reduced almost
exclusively to red and blue with a little green. At length, both pattern
and colours assumed the type of modern Oushaks, that by a slow process
of devolution originated from these antique pieces.
In Armenia and Asia Minor it is probable that weaving existed before the
Christian era, and that the earliest carpets which remain, though
affected by more eastern influences, are largely the product of an
indigenous art. But in India it was otherwise. It is true that Sir
George Birdwood is authority for the statement that the Saracens
introduced carpet-weaving there; but it is most probable that at the
time of the invasion of the armies of Tamerlane and during the lives of
many of his successors, whatever carpets were woven were very crude.
Even when the Moguls began to build and embellish palaces, they obtained
their carpets from Persia. But at length Shah Akbar established
manufacturies at Lahore about the year 1580, and invited Persian weavers
to settle there. From them the native workmen acquired much of their
knowledge of patterns and technique.
It was during the reign of Shah Jahan (1628-1658), builder of the famous
peacock throne and Taj Mahal, that most of the choicest pieces that now
remain were woven. In delicacy of texture they rival those of any other
country, and it is not unusual to find pieces with nearly eight hundred
knots to the square inch; moreover, all their designs are depicted with
remarkable clearness of definition. One of the most noted of these
carpets is the woollen piece, about eight yards long by two and a half
wide, that was made at the royal factory at Lahore and presented to the
Girdlers Company of London in 1634. The mingling of leaf and floral
forms, as well as the Herati designs of rosette and crumpled leaf, on a
field of red, shows unmistakably its relation to Persian carpets. At the
same period were woven large numbers of others with fields covered
with an imposing display of superbly drawn flowers, of which every
part from root to leaf tips was represented with astonishing realism.
Another class included the animal or hunting carpets, which unlike their
Persian prototypes seem intended not so much to portray symbolically
some historic event or abstract idea, as to convey a correct impression
of an actual event.
[Illustration: PLATE 22. OUSHAK CARPET
Loaned by C. F. Williams, Esq., to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New
York]
One of these, a woollen piece with a length of eight and a quarter feet
and a breadth of five and a quarter, is in the Boston Museum of Fine
Arts. The inspiration was from some old Persian piece, but the rendering
is peculiarly Indian. In this representation of an Oriental jungle is a
strange mingling of the real and unreal. The struggle of a monster bird
with a winged beast, half lion, half elephant, and the demoniac faces of
the border suggest the inspiration of early pagan mythology; but the
movements of the running gazelles and the stealthily creeping tiger, the
attitude of the driver of the cart and his attendant, are most natural.
The drawing as a whole is exceedingly delicate. The ground colour of the
field is the red of most Ispahans and Herats of this period, but the
border is a cream colour, a combination not in accord with Persian
tradition. The other colours are fawn, blue, pink, grey and brown. It is
probably the only Indian hunting carpet of its kind.
Few strictly antique carpets from other countries of the Orient are
known. Of the innumerable pieces that were surely woven in Caucasia and
Western Turkestan before the end of the XVII Century, scarcely a vestige
can be found. Nor are there many from the looms of Syria, though in the
days of the Caliphs every mosque was ador
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