rugtracker

Tuesday 29 August 2017

A Caucasian Carpet ?





001



A fragment which recently appeared in an obscure internet auction(001) was once part of  a larger patchwork ensemble sold at Sothebys,New York,in 1985(002)for $880.It belonged to the lower border area,which has actually been re-attached.The fragments were subsequently divided and dispersed;the top right hand section appeared in the Canadian Collections II Catalogue,as the property of Ross Winter(003).It was later advertised by Michael Craycraft.The lower right section was re-offered at Sothebys in 1995 at an estimate of $3-5000,fate unknown(004).A third portion,comprising the lower left field and border,was published in the 1999 ICOC Milan catalogue,Sovrani Tappeti(005).The upper left field is said to be in a Californian collection.The Italian example is of particular interest as it offers a technical analysis,which more or less corresponds to the border fragment(001),to whit:a bulky,short-fibre carded cotton warp ZS6(the border has ZS5),uncommon in older Persian carpets,which are invariably 4-ply,although cotton warp can be found in later Caucasian carpets with either Avshan or Harshang designs;a red weft varying from 2-5 shoots, and most importantly a Persian knot open to the right.This is unusual even in NW Persian weavings,and may indicate the participation of Turkmen weavers.


002



003



004




005



006-front and back,scans



The Trefoil border is not the usual type seen on Caucasian classical carpets,but may be presumed to derive from a spectacular Khorasan carpet,which also features the standard Trefoil border pattern(007 & 008)






007




008



A related carpet was auctioned at Bonhams in 2002(Sale price $ 75,040),and later surfaced with the Textile Gallery,London(see Hali 128,and the Hali Fair catalogue of 2003)By repute it hung in a Scottish hunting lodge for more than a century.It is narrower than the Sothebys carpet,lacking the inner guard stripe,but border and field design are very similar.Its structure is given as “wool pile on a wool foundation”.As there is no indication of Persian knotting,a Turkish knot with a woolen warp must be presumed and the carpet assigned to the classic Caucasian tradition.It seems altogether more lively with its lotus whirligigs (derived from the vase carpet repertoire) and fluid drawing.(009,010,011)


009



010



011



As indicated in the Textile gallery`s notes,the pattern is an adaptation of a Khorasan carpet,now in Berlin(012)The group has been discussed HERE.With their monumental draughtmanship they seem more like Durbar carpets,although an Indian origin can be ruled out.Reversing the telescope,their design origin can be found in Kirman,where large-scale Sickle Leaf carpets were a speciality,but this tradition does not run over 17th century Isfahan;thus we are missing a century of development(013)



012



013



Other 18th century carpets with a Sickle-leaf and Palmette arrangement as in the two pieces under discussion, did not fare so well.A Khorasan example from the Tom`s Collection(014,left),and a carpet with Voytech Blau(014,right) both imitate the central spinal design,but with the large leaves in a horizontal position.They seem quite negligent in their execution and choice of colour.




014



A last carpet,mentioned in the Textile Gallery`s description,features the same rare Trefoil border and was at the de Puy Sale held by the Andersen Galleries in 1925(015).Four classic Turkmen göls underline the possible involvement of Turkmen weavers in this enterprise.The carpet surfaced once more,in ghostly condition,at Sothebys in 2001.



015








Thursday 20 July 2017

Karachov Case Study










Sailer



Not a great deal can be said about the origins of the following carpets.Until Ulrich Schurmann,they were simply classified as Kazaks.Schurmann borrowed the expression from Kerimov`s vast and unwieldy “Azerbaijan Carpets”,which is full of unconfirmed attributions,but apparently strong on fieldwork.There the author illustrates a Karachov carpet said to be stored in the Shah Abbas Mosque in Ganja,and a 5-Year-Plan rug similar to a piece in the book of Isaev.Perhaps for Kerimov the problem lay in the proximity of Georgia and the Kvemo Kartli area of Borchalo to the major production areas for the Karachov,Borchalo(u) and Fachralo carpets,which were difficult to fit into his nationalist world-view.That chauvinism is without doubt the major stumbling-block for carpet scholars in the producing countries need not concern us here,but the area south of Tbilisi in the 19th century was inhabited by Georgians and Azeri Turks,with a minority of Armenians.It is likely that the carpets known as “Karachov”(or Karachoph,or Karachop)were created and woven by Turkish peoples,or by others who were well versed in the tradition of Anatolian and Turkmen carpet design.The prototype for the Karachovs has been often documented-the large pattern Holbein carpets and their 4-and-1 designs from the 16th century.However a carpet in the David Foundation,presumably Egyptian,anticipates the Anatolian design by several centuries.Georgia itself was the source of a number of very early carpet fragments unearthed in the Muguti cave complex,where additional finds of weaving equipment may indicate local production.Karachov is said by Irina Koshoridze to incorporate seven villages,and to lay in Eastern Georgia,however she fails to place it on her map.All other sources follow Schurmann`s book from 1960,but the author has been unable to find any mention of Karachov on a genuinely old map of the area,so the geography remains questionable.A collection of old maps can be viewed here:  Caucasian Maps . Assuming the Georgian attribution to be correct,the instigators of this large-scale production would have sat in Tiflis,itself a major carpet trading node.


Kerimov III-154-108,stored in the Shah Abbas Mosque in Ganja



The Shah Abbas Mosque in Ganja



David Foundation(previously with Yves Mikaeloff)



Early fragments found in the Muguti Caves,Georgia(see Hali 99)



Schurmann,1960



 
 
 



 





001





LEAF AND CALYX BORDER


 




002



Blue Field-Yellow Border



003


Bluegreen Field-Red Border

004



Bluegreen Field-Yellow Border



005



Green Field-Red Border



006



Green Field-Yellow Border



007



Green Field-Red Border-4 Boxes in Medallion



008



Green Field-Red Border SOT 2 type



009



Red Field-Blue Border
010



Red Field-Green Border



011



LEAF & 4 ARROWS


Green Ground-Yellow Border





012




013




Red Ground-Blue Border



014




RED GROUND-GREEN BORDER



015


HOOKS AND STARS

 Kotchak & 4 Arrows Border



016



Kotchak Border


017







Leaf & 4 Arrows



018



Leaf & Calyx Border



019



MEMLING MEDALLION




Blue-Green Ground


020





 Memling,Blue Ground


021





Memling,Green Ground




022



Memling,Red Ground,Rhomboid Stepped Border



023



Memling,Red Ground





024





Latchhook Center



025





Running Dog Medallion



026





Karagashli Medallions



027



ATYPICAL BORDERS


Four Arrow and Leaf Border


028




Four Arrow Border


029



Four Arrow,Diverse Border Motifs


030





Four Arrow,Kotchak & Latchhook Border


031



Four Arrow & Leaf-Four Panel Center


032




Four Arrow & Medallion Border


033




Four Medallion and S


034



Four Arrow,Yellow Border


035



Addorsed Animal Border


036




Borchalou Border


037




Crab Border





 Crab leaf Border





039


Fachralo Border,Green Ground


040





Fachralo Border,Red Ground


041



Latchhook Border


042




Leaf Variant Border


043



Medallion Border


044



Medallion Border,Tree Kazak type


045



Potato Stamp Border,Whiteground


046




Potato Stamp Border


047



Ramshorn Border


048



Scarab Border




049




Scrolling S Border


050






Swastika S Border


051



Turkmen Kotchak Border


052



Turkmen Sainak Border


053




Whiteground Leaf & Calyx Border


054




Whiteground Meander Border


054-A



Whiteground Rosette Border


054-B



Other Whiteground Borders


055
Karachovs with Fachralo Panel


055A




KARACHOV VARIANT WITH DOUBLE MIHRABS



Dated examples


056



057



Borchalou Border


058




Crabflower Border


059




Fachralo Border


060



Latchhook Border


061



062










Horizontal Hooks


063



Swastika S Border


064





Rosette Border


065



Sainak Border


066



Other Borders


067



KARACHOV VARIANT WITHOUT MIHRABS


Borchalou Border


068



Latchhook Border


069



Crabflower Border


070






Leaf & Calyx Border


071




Other Borders


072



TERMINAL KARACHOV VARIANTS


Kotchak Panels


073




Central Medallion


074



Holbein Medallion


075



Medallions with Chelaberd Border


076




Round Medallions


077




Kotchak Panels with Sainak Border


078




Variants,Other


079




080-Webb Hill