Sixteen years after the New York Exhibition " Early Oriental Rugs" Arthur Upham Pope organised a similar event at the Art Club of Chicago."A Loan Exhibition of Early Oriental Carpets" with an accompanying catalogue,was a veiled sales venture,though not immediately recognizable as such.A clever mixture of academic and mercantile interests was the defining factor in Arthur Pope`s life.His interest in Iranian and Islamic art developed through his fascination with carpets.When,as a young man he first encountered rugs in an aunt`s house in Boston,he described it as "a call to the pulpit"And indeed Pope`s father was a minister,but alas not a wealthy one.So Pope embarked on a career as a rug broker,working with Maurice Dimand,with whom he was later embroiled in a fractious relationship.In 1917 he curated the carpet section of Phoebe Hearst`s catalogue,another "loan" exhibition,and his later wife,Phyllis Ackermann, was responsible for cataloguing the tapestries.
The 1926 show was certainly a stellar moment.The 45 year old Pope knocked out the catalogue in the space of a few weeks.We know nothing of the actual organisation,and there appears to be no photographic documentation of the event.Presumably the final choice of 55 exhibits was down to Arthur.Although lacking the grandeur of the 1910 Munich exhibition,or the firepower of the New York show,Pope`s selection is intellectually more challenging,and coupled with his purple prose was engineered to inflame the sensibilities.In financial terms the show was quite a success,and was extended into February.Afterward 24 carpets were incorporated in an exhibition of Islamic art at the Chicago Art Institute.The event can be seen as a warm-up for the 1931 exhibition of Persian Art in London,where over a hundred carpets were shown.
There is no mention of the exhibition in either the Papal biography "Surveyors of Persian Art",nor in his Wikipedia entry.It seems the event has been glossed over,for whatever reasons.
1) In the sixty years between these reproductions the ground colour has changed from a deep crimson to a soft lilac shade.The Parish-Watson has often been compared to the Poldi Pezzoli Hunting carpet due to a similarity in border design,but the over-protective Parish border is a rough simplification.Still,the field offers a great deal of diversity in the classic Tabriz style.Pope later back-pedalled on his dating to the earliest period(Survey,page 2291,note 1)The carpet has had a rough ride since it left the P-W collection,apparently in 1939.It sold for $26,400 at Sothebys in 1985,only to re-surface a year later in the same location to sell for $$33,000.A third appearance at Christies in 2004 saw it rise to $154,755.Published by Moshe Tabibnia in Milestones,now Zaleski Collection.
2)Pope indirectly dedicated the 1926 catalogue to Friedrich Sarre on the occasion of his 60th birthday("had it been more worthy") The medallion carpet from Baron Tucher,which was subsequently purchased by G.H Myers,had been shown sixteen years before at the MMK exhibition in 1910.Discussion : Rugtracker plate 51
No colour reproduction seems to exist,and its current whereabouts are unknown.
Getty used the Ardabil at his home in Malibu,and a photo exists of it hanging in his garden.He eventually donated the carpet to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 1953.
The LA Ardabil is said to be finer than its London counterpart,although much more extensive analysis would have to be undertaken to confirm this.It appears in a photo quite dwarfed by its British sister.All known fragments,some 14 in all, are from the borders.Curiously,there is no fragment from the field of an Ardabil(except the Hopf fragment,which is from something else)
There is a charming story recounted about Ziegler`s manager in Sultanabad,Theodor Strauss, who may well have discovered the Ardabils.He is said to have proposed to his wife in 1900,standing before the Ardabil carpet in the Victoria and Albert museum!He vowed to make a copy of the Ardabil,which was eventually finished before the first world war.The piece was smaller of course,is said to have taken ten years to complete,and has in the meantime vanished.It would seem that at the time of purchase,the Ardabils were in good enough condition to have been copied knot for knot onto graph paper.
There is one seemingly very old carpet which relates directly to the Ardabils in its field design,the Stora carpet,first published by Pope in 1926,then by Jekyll in 1928.It entered the Keir Collection in 1959,and is shown here in its 1926 condition and its 1978 appearance.Clearly,horrible things have happened to it in the meantime-presumably washing and the fading of repair have taken their toll.It was Pope who first pointed out its resemblance to the Ardabil,dating the piece in 1926 to the second half 16th century(attribution:Keshan),and in 1939 to the end of the sixteenth century(attribution:Kirman)Dr.Spuhler,in his entry for the Keir Collection catalogue,pulls him up on this,dating the carpet to the Mid-16th century.The similarities in the field design are obvious,the Stora/Keir piece(4)displaying a simplified ,yet elegant version of the Ardebil`s volcanic flower landscape.Otherwise,the two are galaxies apart.The Stora/Keir has a mundane border design of ragged palmettes not out of place on an Indo-Isfahan,ragged lotus palmettes have replaced the usual cartouches above and below the well-drawn central medallion,and apart from the dark blue field the colouring is unexceptional.The structural analysis is said to be:Warp,Z4S dyed orange,weft, 3 shoots of grey brown wool(?),2 straight,1 wavy,knot count 3480 per dcm.This is basically a Vase Carpet structure,although one would expect coloured variation in the wefting.Perhaps more thorough analysis would reveal this feature.
The Stora/Keir was compared stylistically by Pope to the round carpet in the possession of the Marquet de Vasselot,due to the use of ragged lotus palmettes and the small whiteground borders.Notably,the piece shows a good deal of cloudbanding in the main border and central roundel,a device generally absent from the Sanguszko group of carpets,into which the Stora/Keir has also been elevated.This occurred almost clandestinely in Ian Bennett`s celebrated article on the Classical carpets in the Lyons museum(Hali 33,p.48)Discussing the Sanguszko group,he writes"the Stora differs from all others in both colour and in the lack of any figurative elements;its field,medallion and borders are filled with floral arabesques and palmettes"On the face of it this is not a substantial basis for comparison,but it`s clear that Pope was edging his way in this direction,stating that"the two carpets seem to be carpet-weavers products without the intervention of a miniaturist"i.e Sanguszko carpets sans Sanguszko.
There is a tendency to date the Stora/Keir carpet much later,even into the late 19th century.But as Pope pointed out,it is not a copy(a la Mumford)but an interpretation of the Ardabils made by people with access to the carpet itself or to the original sketches or cartoons.Although peripheral,its relation to the Sanguszko group is evident,and it reveals the occult influence the Ardabils must have had during the last 350 years.
8) A carpet with a long history which was first mentioned in a French Catalogue of 1828.It belonged then to the Maquis de Lagoy,and was offered for sale in Paris by the dealer Chappey in 1900 for 80,000 Francs.Purchased by Yerkes,it was sold in 1910 to either Duveen or Parish Watson,and later entered the Collection of Mortimer Schiff.It was discovered by Kurt Erdmann who compared it to a carpet in the Mobilier national,a carpet much faded and restored and lacking metal brocading,as does the Lagoy.The carpet re-appeared at Sothebys Islamic sale on 12 October, but retired unbought,and has not been seen since.It had lost its hand-painted restorations from the Yerkes period,but was still a rough and energetic version of the Mobiler carpet.Should it actually belong to the Salting group,it would be one of only four pieces in this format.
Unpublished by Pope,who refers to its appearance in the Yerkes auction catalogue of 1910.
9)Lent by Bernheimer.Pope was the first to publish what became known as the Cassirer Carpet,named after the collector who purchased it in 1929.it was quickly loaned to the Islamic department in Berlin,when Ernst Kühnel gave it a big write-up(Kunst und Kunstler,1930)and after the war returned in 1949 to Cassirer`s heirs.The Berlin Museum finally acquired it in 1957.
The lower half of the carpet,where weaving began,is some 13 cms shorter than the top,giving that area a compressed look.The colour is quite hard and severe.An unusual border of fish chomping into duck`s necks is surely an insider jokeor rebus,now lost to us.This is counterpointed with paired
peacocks,which also fill,somewhat unimaginatively,the central
medallion.The border scheme has been roughly appropriated from a more
superior fragment in the Hermitage Museum,the
"Steiglitz"Interestingly the carpet has no combat scenes,just animals
in flight,or in pose,which is more typical of Indian carpets.According
to May Beattie the carpet was woven in Vase Structure(as is the
Steiglitz)but a proper analysis has never been published.It is a quite
ugly carpet,fussy and overdone.Attempts by May Beattie to
"Sanguszko-ise" it were grudgingly accepted by Friedrich Spuhler.One
could say that it is as close to a proper Sanguszko as the Lagoy carpet
is to a Salting.
,
10) A fragment from the lower half of a carpet now in Lisbon,the "Madre de Deus"Now in the Textile Museum.Fuller treatment here,plate 64 : rugtracker
11)This fragment of a carpet in cut-up technique,with French &Co in 1926,passed to Jean and Yves Mikaeloff,the Textile gallery,and Thomas and Gwen Farnham before being auctioned at Sothebys in 2015 for &75,000.Lately it was seen with Jay Nazmiyal online.it measures 0.69 x 1.32 mtr and is composed of three(Pope) or 5 (Sothebys) field fragments and three spandrels or corner pieces,plus part of the field with animals.
With the exception of the Czartoryski Salting carpet,no members of that group employ a ragged-leaf border.Instead,they basically stick to the format of cartouches with inscriptions.But the French& Co fragment resembles much less the Czartoryki than it does the group of highly refined carpets descended from the Emperor´s carpet,such as the recently re-united two halves in Hamburg.Those belong to a group which feature Lotus Palmettes and swooping birds,as here.
Five main border pieces,and some bits have been isolated.These were used to make up the"field"
Three corner pieces with exquisite tree drawing have survived.Such corner-pieces do not occur in other Salting carpets,which usually feature arabesque and/or bird forms.
A difficulty to be overcome is the fragment which features a crafty leopard eyeing its prey.The ground colour seems corroded,which would indicate a black or brown dye,or perhaps even Lac dye.Yet the fragments have a perfectly healthy red.A corroded ground seems not to occur in the medallion design Salting group.But perhaps it is from another carpet?
Whereas the French&Co fragments draw inspiration from many other Salting rugs,the sum of the parts adds up to something else,perhaps much closer to the Bardini fragment(shown here in a possible re-construction as favoured by Erdmann)The Bardini also shows traces of silver thread,as does the French &Co.piece.
Calligraphy and animal drawing resembles the Bargello fragment.
Minor border resembles the Bardini fragment.
Bird drawing resembles the Von Pannwitz-Thyssen.
Corner piece tree drawing resembles the Lees Williams Medallion carpet.
A carpet which incorporates all these design elements is the Lisbon-TM Madre de Deus Red-Ground Floral carpet-see plate 10-2.
12)Part of a second generation Emperor`s carpet,this composite of fragments is now in the Textile Museum-another Myers purchase.It incorporates a fragment from Bernheimer,published in the supplement to the MMK catalogue of 1910.See:https://www.rugtracker.com/2015/05/lineage-i-iran16th-century.html-plate VII.Loaned by Demotte.
13)This large fragment consisting of two ends of a carpet is part of a group designated "The Trinitarias" after a carpet now in Australia.They feature a border of large rosettes and cartouches,a central medallion,and a field with cloudbands and flaming palmettes.They form a nexus which gave birth to the "Harshang" carpets.Such carpets date from the late 17th to the early 19th.They could have been made in Persia or India.More here: rugtracker
14)Very few "Red-Ground Floral" carpets exist on a blue ground.Even fewer with a Strapwork border,in this case reminiscent of a yellow-ground fragment in the Ryksmuseum.This very large,damaged and impressive carpet lent by Kelekian later entered the custodianship of Joseph McMullan,and is now in the MET.With a spiral trellis full of swooping birds and a carefully drafted layout in the tradition of the Emperor`s Carpets.
15)A member of the exquisite group of Red-Ground Floral carpets with all-silk foundation and metal thread brocading-Salting RGF`s as it were-this carpet was loaned by Duveen whose asking price was $25,000.It is said to have previously belonged to the Austrian Emperor Franz-Josef,and later went to the Norton Simon Foundation.Subsequently,it was advertised by the German dealer Herbert Ostler on the cover of Weltkunst,1 October 1974,and was auctioned at Lefevre`s for 48,000 GBP on 2 April 1976.
16)Brokered by Pope before and following Edith Rockefeller`s death,this large Vase carpet entered the Metropolitan Museum, New York,in 1943.It is one of a small group of large flower carpets on a red ground,some nine in number,with an elegant arabesque border.Only one blue ground carpet with such a border is known,now in the Al Sabah Collection Kuwait.Pope compared it favourably to the example from the Ballard Collection, St.Louis,but a carpet with a three flower row was also on loan for years to the Ryksmuseum,before selling at Rippon-Boswell in 2009 for $27,450(previous appearances at Mak van Way in 1978 and Christies October 1993)In the same group a carpet in the Vakflar Museum Istanbul and a piece with Tabibnia are worthy of note.The Jeziorak-Thyssen,once in the Figdor Collection sold at Sothebys in 2013 for $462.825,and the V&A`s example has a simpler,more robust drawing.
A frequently noted anomaly of this carpet is the break at the top,when the design suddenly shifts into an allover arabesque,proof that these workshops produced both types.The carpet is invariably reproduced with the Vase and Bouquet upside down,in which case the carpet was thus so knotted and the design break commences at the beginning.The author is unable to confirm the weaving direction,but Pope prints the carpet with the Vase right-side up,which is logical.Presumably the Vase meme was introduced into these carpets to define the general viewpoint.The Vase itself continues as a device into the Transylvanian carpets,where it is often ambiguously depicted as a mosque-lamp.A blue-ground fragment,of equally impressive aesthetic clout,is held in Berlin.
The Rockefeller-MET, one of the most dramatic of garden carpets,is said to have once belonged to Baron Tucher.
17)Now at the Textile Museum,and presumably a Myers purchase,this Vase carpet from the Tucher collection was published in the 1908 update to the Wienerwerk.It had been lent by Bernheimer,and is of the more standardised type with proper,but in this case slightly jumbled symmetry.It fits comfortably into a red-ground group with flower-petal border,of which the most accomplished example is probably the Ballard.An eccentric member of this group,at Sothebys in 1984,is now in the Louvre.There are virtually no good blue-ground examples with a flower-petal border,but a piece in Cincinnati comes close.The poor old Lady Baillie item,sold after auction at Christies in 2004($ 285,200)had a long publication pedigree but seems to have subsequently disappeared.It was the pair to a carpet destroyed in Berlin in 1945.
18)Lent by Altman(via Jacoby)this is a member of the preceeding group.Unsold at Sothebys in 1977,exhibited by Herrmann in 1982(SOT IV-64)It was subsequently auctioned at Sothebys in 1989 for 85,800 GBP.Once in the Goddard/Remarque Collection.
19)This small Vase carpet(150 x 207 cms) was loaned by Kelekian and later entered the McMullan Collection,later donated to the MET.It has the same border as the following carpet,and inspired a number of later carpets usually attributed to"the Kurds",whoever they may be.The medallion is not the conventional type seen on classical Persian carpets.The field design occurs on a number of items,of which two are shown here.
20)Another Jacoby-Altman rug,again once with McMullan and now in the MET.The border relates it to the previous example.A more orderly version resides in Kuwait,first published by Martin and Hendley,and acquired at Christies in 1982.An outlandish fragment with an unusual border is in the Turk ve Islam,Istanbul.An attempt at a reconstruction,and a view of the carpet in its real condition can be seen in plate 20-3.
21)Aptly described by Pope as"obviously a fragment of one of the greatest carpets ever woven"Loaned by Bernheimer and cherished till its departure at the Bernheimer Christies auction on St.Valentine`s Day 1996,where it sold for $120,890.A reprise at Sothebys in 2014 saw it fetch $365,000.An inkling of this design can be seen on the Rockefeller carpet,plate 16,and a comparable example with a more complex border and overloaded field is in the MAK Vienna.But no other arabesque scales the heights of the Bernheimer fragment.
Such carpets surely provided the impetus for the Garrus carpets from the Bijar area,through the intermediary of a carpet such as was once in the Wher Collection,and with Herrmann(auctioned Christies 2001 for $25,205)
A reconstruction has been attempted.
22)Many tales have been told about the carpet fragments from the Chehel Sutun in Isfahan.Pope`s story concens the Zil-i-Soltan or Governer-General of Isfahan whose workmen discovered the said fragments and sold them off "for a few tomans each".The fragment in the 1926 catalogue is not illustrated thus it is difficult to say if it falls under one of the twelve fragments known to the author.The first fragment was published by Hendley in 1905,although the carpet had been described(and apparently illustrated)by Pascal Coste in 1867(Erdmann)Three pieces had entered the V&A in 1901.Another two items had been sold at the 1925 Benguiat sale.A fragment at Christies in 2016 brought $ 11,555.
Pope does not describe the piece in question,which was loaned by B.W Stainton,who seems to have been an associate of Vincent Robinson,and who was probably involved in the sale and abduction of the Kashan lusterware Mihrab now in Berlin.It seems likely that Pope had not seen the piece when he wrote his catalogue entry.
The twelve recorded fragments and a reconstruction by Kendrick from the V&A follow.
23)Lent by Costikyan,this carpet later entered the McMullan Collection and eventually the MET.It is the famous carpet whose date has been altered by a hundred years,from 1894 to1794.Such carpets are ascribed to the Garrus area of Bijar in Western Persia,and are said to have been woven by Kurds,although rumour has it that the workshops had been set up by Azeri entrepreneurs and the weavers were local Turkish people.Be that as it may,1794 was old enough to qualify for "Early"In fact Pope does mention a similar rug in the Golestan Palace in Tehran dated 1851,but which is actually dated 1906.Four other carpets in the symmetric arabesque style are known from the same area.See note 21.
24)Unpublished in the catalogue,this had already been exposed to public view in the second of Vincent Robinson`s catalogues in 1893.One of a pair,it is has a Chintamani style border as in an example from Tabriz.However,such borders were used in the Bijar area on rugs with this design.In 1926 Vincent Robinson- of Ardabil fame-was still going strong,and part of the International carpet mafia.
The Garrus design was copied all over Iran,even in Kashan,even in silk.It is presumably still being woven today.
Followed by 4 copies from other weaving districts.
25)Lent by Duveen and priced to sell at $30,000,this apparently entered the Judge Gary collection.it is the pair to a carpet once with Bernheimer which sold in 1996 for 375,000.That carpet is shown here in color for reference,as the Duveen/Gary piece has disappeared.
26)One of a famous carpet pair,the other of which is now in Berlin,this carpet was loaned by Parish Watson and entered the Keir collection in 1961.Both rugs were at one time in the possession of Prince Johan of Liechtenstein,and are so similar that they have sometimes been confused.
More information: rugtracker
27)Lions and tigers chase their prey around a garden in free-fall whilst the Dragon and Phoenix fight one last battle...the TM`s silk Safavid kilim was acquired by Mr.Myers somewhat later in Munich from the Bernheimer`s,perhaps to avoid paying a fee to the Arts Club(the profits were divided between Club and Vendors) It has a weaker counterpart in Berlin,the "Padishah" carpet,so-called because the kilim is thus inscribed.That carpet was acquired in 1914 and perhaps inspired Myers`purchase.A third fragment with similar medallion is kept in Copenhagen.
28)Lent by French &Co,who presumably bought it from the US diplomat Robert Bliss,sometime before 1926.it has a companion with a similar border but angels in the field and medallion,now in Liechtenstein.
29)Published in colour in the catalogue,this Safavid silk-metal kilim is now in the Nelson Atkins Museum.It has some similarities with an item in the Residenz,Munich.Lent by the Stora Brothers.
30)The Jacoby-Altman Dragon carpet,once with Godard/Remarque was auctioned at Sothebys in 1977.Its current state can be seen in the center picture.With a rare white border.
31)The Bernheimer Dragon carpet seems lost to view-another reason why photo documentation will become more important in the future as pieces slowly disappear.According to Pope it was in high-pile condition.A carpet illusttrated by Ghazarian,with similar lay-out and crocodile Dragon-heads,is shown for comparison.
32)Notable for its blue ground and rounded proportions,the dragons appear here almost as an afterthought,and fighting lions and kylins are nowhere to be seen.It would appear to be a transitional piece,more Palmette rug than Dragon.Loaned by Bachstitz("of the Hague")It re-appeared twice at auction,the first time at Finarte in 1995 when it sold for $25,570;and again at Christies in 1998,bringing $58,825.
Pope wrote an article in 1925,debunking,as he saw it,the Myth of Armenian Dragon Carpets,i.e that they were not Armenian at all.He categorized 5 different types of Dragon carpets,but his grouping is eccentic and too widely spread.It may surprise us today that he included the Gohar carpet in a third group(as well as some standard Dragon carpet types)but his taxonomy is frankly faulty.
The present author has isolated five groups,shown here as 1-Carpets with Dragons,Lions and Kylins;2-Dragons with 4 Dragons in the width;3-Repeating Dragons without Lions and Kylins;4-A type characterised by the McIlhenny carpet in Philadelphia;5-so-called "Dragonless Dragon Carpets".
33)A number of corrupt Caucasian copies of the "Portugese" carpet group exist.They have been dealt with in the last entry: rugtracker.-Plate 5.Now in the Textile Museum.No colour reproduction could be found.
34)Published in colour in the catalogue(although some forty pages before the description)this large Caucasian carpet features designs derived from the Vase-Carpet group.Shown here with the colour repro in Altman`s own catalogue from 1923(also published by Jacoby)A number of such carpets have survived,the most naturalistic being the example once with Harold Keshishian.Shown here with its progenitor, a Sickle-Leaf Vase Carpet from the Gulbenkian Collection.
35)Lent by E.Beghian,this carpet is now in the Textile Museum,yet another Myers purchase.The Vine-Leaf Palmette design,derived from the Safavid Red Ground Florals,as was the Harshang,was also made in large,highly complex variants.
36)Yet another Myers purchase,this is the Textile Museum`s R 36.2.7,loaned,as was the last carpet, by E.Beghian.
Further Information: rugtracker
An immaculate example of this type was published by Schürmann and auctioned at Nagel in 1987 for $57,852.Now Zaleski Collection.
37) Lent by Kent Costikyan,this Cairene carpet had been at the AAA Sale in 1914,Lot 301.It has since disappeared but a fragment in Detroit has the same large impled Saz-Leaf medallions.More Information: rugtracker
38) A rare type of Ushak carpet with octagramme medallions in two differing styles.Another three pieces are known.More here: rugtracker-23 and 24.Lent by Böhler,who acquired it from Bardini,this carpet was later with W.H Crocker,Harold Keshishian, and was last seen in an Italian Collection.
39)Kelekian`s Lotto carpet in the Anatolian style is said to have sold for $11,000,but the same vendor exhibited the same rug again at the 1947 Chicago show.It is now in the Art Institute of Chicago.Some of these Lotto carpets with a medallion border and Anatolian design can be very long and boring.Some other examples with 4 rows are shown below.
40) Published by Bode, Martin,and Orendi,this carpet,once with Paulette Godard, was on sale in Munich in 1978 with Eberhart Herrmann for DM 85,000.C.G Ellis published a photo of it in 1986,with its restorations faded and visible.This,and a carpet fragment in Budapest,are the only two carpets recorded with chain-link Kufi border in the Kelim Style.
41)Lent by Böhler,this Small Patern Holbein Carpet went to the Textile Museum.Republished in 1968 by Yohe/Jones with its repairs now visible.Listed by Ellis in OCTS I-page 68,R-37.No colour photo seems available.
42)Lent by Ballard,who had bought the piece a year before at the Benguiat auction,this carpet was surely not on sale,but served as showcasing for the other patron of the show.Now in St.Louis,the fragmented Ushak with its gigantic cloud-collar medallion is clearly one of the greatest Turkish rugs,with no forebears or contemporaries.Yet a group of carpets later appeared in the Ushak (or Smyrna) back-country which seek to emulate the Ballard`s uncanny presence.Chief among them is a carpet now in the V&A.Another carpet,once at Finarte,also features the same Cairene style border.
43)Auctioned a year before at the AAA Sale"Antique Rugs from Private Sources" lot 96,for $3500,where it was described as "of the type used in the Churches of Spain" this red-ground large Medallion Ushak(LMU) is actually of the type with one central medallion and two halves depicting an endless vertical flow.Pope compare the central medallion to a bowl from Rhages,which seems erroneous.The carpet employs a solid colour central Quatrefoil.
44)According to Jacoby,the crowning item of his entire collection,this LMU was later auctioned at Edelmann`s in 1980.Pope compares it to a rug depicted in a tapestry from 1663,which portrays Louis XIV visiting the Gobelins Factory.Yet that item seems to resemble a Safavid silk kilim.
45)A Turkish carpet lent by Indoudjian Freres,but without illustration.
46)Ditto,but judging by the description,a Transylvanian medallion rug.
47)Lent by Kent Costikyan,this Large Pattern Holbein carpet ("LPH") seems to have disappeared.A pity,as very few others of the type have survived.Seems to have lost its outer borders.Most closely related is an earlier carpet in the Turk ve Islam Museum,Istanbul.See rugtracker
48)An interesting Ushak carpet,probably 19th century.Pope refers to the illustration in Jacoby 1923,46.A similar carpet in runner format exists in the V&A.With a border reminiscent of Melas carpets and Tulips often seen on Karapinar rugs.
49) A Transylvanian carpet without vase and a double-hooked cartouche border,with an unusual zig-zag medallion.Later with Schürmann,and after with Herrmann(SOT6-5)Schürmann rightly bemoaned the loss of its kilim finishes,which contribute greatly to the proportions of such pieces.
50)Certainly one of the most elegant of an illustrious group,named the "Davanzatis" after a piece from the Davanzati Palace,which is, in fact,not particularly illustrious.From Bernheimer,who published it in in 1959,it was acquired by Ulrich Schürmann at the height of the Wirtschaftswunder.It entered the collection of Peter Lehmann-Bärenklau,and was auctioned at Christies in 2014 for $193,225.More info: rugtracker
51)Lent by Kent Costikyan,this later passed to Peter Bausback via Ulrich Schürmann.Such rugs later mutated into what has become known as the "Kis Ghiordes",but the earlier group are less stereotyped.See rugtracker (99-108)
52)This carpet,lent by Demotte,was unpublished in the catalogue.Myers bought it in March 1926,and it has remained at the Textile Museum.It has the most perfectly rounded central medallion of any Mamluke carpet.The TM`s description is "Rug with Changing Colour Effect"The pattern field of the smaller medallions is reminiscent of Turkmen tentbands.
More info here: rugtracker
53)Lent by Demotte,and described as a "Spanish Altar Carpet" this group was frequently copied in the early 20th century and is discussed Here: rugtracker
54)Again from Demotte,this carpet,unillustrated,is presumably the piece that surfaced at Christies in 2016,where it sold for 12,500 GBP.There seems to be a typo in the text as the ground colour is described as green,but such rugs are invariably on a red ground,with green wreaths.Pope describes the border as "indicating a double-headed flying dragon"A number of carpets with this border are known.Hauntingly beautiful,some 38 carpets and fragments with this design are known.The Demotte rug was first seen at Lefevre on 28 November 1975,where it graced the cover,and sold for 10,400 GBP.
55)The last entry is a modern silk carpet produced in Persia in 1906,with an astonishing 2500 knots to the square inch.The design is based on a voided velvet,now dispersed among the museums of the world.Ostensibly for pedagogic purposes,the text is actually a dig at an unnamed dealer,Carl Meyer-Pünter,who published it in 1917 as part of a sales catalogue for the Meyer-Müller company in Zürich.Featured as a Safavid silk carpet fragment,it is rumoured to have been sold to Meyer-Müller by Ernst Kühnel,who also cited a similar carpet in the Shchukin Museum Moscow,now integrated in the Pushkin Museum-thus Pope`s tale.Kühnel is mentioned in the text to the Zürich fragment,so there may be some truth to this.Pope gloats over the unsuspecting European Collector who is said to have paid a "thumping"price for the item,believing it to be antique.
The Zürich fragment may also be a sampler,although it appears quite worn.It was later exhibited at the Kunstgewerbe Museum in 1936 in an exhibition of Iranian art-from the Sammlung Meyer-Muller-which casts doubt on Pope`s story.It would be interesting to know whether such a carpet exists today in Moscow.
A similar carpet,now in the MET and attributed to Turkey,is shown for comparison.This was a gift of one C.Ruxton Love Jr.,in 1966,and is likely to be the carpet which Pope published.
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| The Wrigley Building,site of the 1926 Chicago Exhibition |
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| Pope`s typewriter with a paragraph from his introduction to the catalogue |