Notes:

Catalog Description

Fine Carpets
SALE L06870 LOT 106
SESSION 1 | 05 Apr 06 10:00 AM.
London, New Bond Street
PROPERTY FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTION
A NORTHWEST PERSIAN MEDALLION CARPET,
25,000—35,000 GBP
MEASUREMENTS
approximately 650 by 240cm., 21ft. 4in. by 7ft. 11in.
DESCRIPTION
17th century

Condition Note: reduced in length, oxidised walnuts, missing outermost minor guard stripes on all four sides, one rewoven end guard stripe, partially rewoven borders, repiling, reweaves

TECHNICAL ANALYSIS
Colours: Ivory, pale yellow, apricot, light terracotta, pale blue, mid-blue, ultramarine, pistachio, teal, crimson, walnut (oxidised), 11
Pile: Wool, Z2Sw, asymmetric, open to the left
Warps: Cotton, natural and (very occasionally) wool, dark blue, Z2-4, 2-3 shoots
Wefts: Cotton, natural, Z4S, depressed
Sides: Not original
Ends: Not original
Density: Vertical 5/cm
Horizontal: 4/cm

PROVENANCE
Mr and Mrs Reginald Toms, The Château de Coinsins, Canton of Vaud, Switzerland

LITERATURE AND REFERENCES
The Toms Collection, Oriental and European Rugs and Carpets, Volume II, Sotheby's London, 7th June 1995, lot 126

CATALOGUE NOTE
The composition and scale of this carpet follow in the tradition of illustrious 16th century Northwest Persian weavings such as the hunting carpet in the Poldi-Pezzoli museum, Milan,signed Ghiyath al-Din Jami and dated AH 949/1542-43 (see Thompson, Jon and Canby, S., Hunt for Paradise, New York and Milan 2003, no. 12) and the Rothschild Tabriz medallion carpet now in the Museum of Islamic Art, Qatar, (Christie's London, 8th July 1999, lot 188.)

Here, the large lobed medallion, enclosing a smaller medallion supported by split-leaf arabesques and palmettes, is more closely related to the designs of the medallion carpet in the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, (see Gilles, R. et al, Le Ciel dans un Tapis, Paris and Lisbon, 2004, pl. 35) and a carpet more recently on the market, from an Italian collector, sold Christie's New York, 5th April 2001, lot 125. These two 16th century carpets also share a field devoid of spandrels, and a cartouche border, with the present lot.

This medallion design met with such success that it was also emulated in Mughal India. A Mughal medallion carpet that is also in the Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon, achieves a grandeur parallel to its Safavid prototypes, see Walker, Daniel, Flowers Underfoot, New York, 1997, figs. 56 and 57 that the author dates circa 1620-30.

The scale of motifs and angularity of drawing in the present lot indicate that it is a 17th century continuum of the 16th century design schemes. Here, the boldness and stylization of the palmettes and vines create an aesthetic statement that is very different from the refined delicacy of its predecessors. The fan-like palmettes and rendition of the cartouches in the border anticipate those carpets, woven later just to the north, in the South Caucasus, that would in turn emulate a carpet such as this. For an example of a Caucasian carpet with similar field palmettes see Ellis, C.G., Early Caucasian Rugs, Washington D.C., 1976, pl. 19.


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