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Not currently on display at the V&A

Carpet

1850-1899 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Woollen carpet with a pole medallion of stepped diamonds in white, on a field of dark blue, with stepped indentations from the sides, also in white. Scattered motifs of birds cover field and medallions. The colours are mainly pale blue, red, orange, yellow and pale green.


Warp: brown and white wool, usually plied together; Z2S; 14 threads per inch (58 per dm).

Weft: dark red wool; Z-spun, unplied; 2 shoots after each line of knots; 11 knots per inch (43 per dm). There is a noticeable wedge of weft halfway along the left hand side.

Pile: wool; 10 colours: dark red, red, light red, yellow, green, light green, dark blue, blue, black, white; symmetrical knot tied around 2 threads; 77 knots per sq. inch (1247 per dm).

Side finish: one cord oversewn with blocks of coloured wool alternating with blocks of red wool.

End finish: missing.

Design: Field: white ground almost completely filled with a dark blue lobed medallion; the diagonal lines of the lobe are stepped and the dark blue is bordered by yellow, red, green and black lines. The spaces on the white ground, where it intrudes into the dark blue, are filled with coloured blocks and with one large segmented octagon. In its turn the dark blue medallion contains 13 white ground stepped diamonds which are all linked vertically on a white bar. The border between the dark blue and the white consists of yellow, red, blue and black lines. The dark blue contains small motifs: botehs, a bird, a 4-legged animal and a device which resembles a double-headed eagle. Four birds, small botehs and 2 double-headed eagles appear in each white diamond.

Another way of seeing this design is: as dark blue ground with one central row of diamonds and 2 half rows.

Main border: has yellow ground with geometric motifs, mainly in dark red in which the figures alternately face inwards and outwards.

Inner and outer borders: blue ground with stylised floral meander on black stem with red blossoms and yellow leaves. Note: the lower outer border began as a dark red ground with thin Z-motifs in light green, blue, white, dark blue and yellow. There is an extra border at the top and bottom (incomplete) with diagonal stripes in white and dark blue with small yellow and red botehs on dark blue and red and green botehs on the white.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Woollen knotted pile
Brief description
Woollen carpet, Fars, Iran, 1850-1899
Physical description
Woollen carpet with a pole medallion of stepped diamonds in white, on a field of dark blue, with stepped indentations from the sides, also in white. Scattered motifs of birds cover field and medallions. The colours are mainly pale blue, red, orange, yellow and pale green.


Warp: brown and white wool, usually plied together; Z2S; 14 threads per inch (58 per dm).

Weft: dark red wool; Z-spun, unplied; 2 shoots after each line of knots; 11 knots per inch (43 per dm). There is a noticeable wedge of weft halfway along the left hand side.

Pile: wool; 10 colours: dark red, red, light red, yellow, green, light green, dark blue, blue, black, white; symmetrical knot tied around 2 threads; 77 knots per sq. inch (1247 per dm).

Side finish: one cord oversewn with blocks of coloured wool alternating with blocks of red wool.

End finish: missing.

Design: Field: white ground almost completely filled with a dark blue lobed medallion; the diagonal lines of the lobe are stepped and the dark blue is bordered by yellow, red, green and black lines. The spaces on the white ground, where it intrudes into the dark blue, are filled with coloured blocks and with one large segmented octagon. In its turn the dark blue medallion contains 13 white ground stepped diamonds which are all linked vertically on a white bar. The border between the dark blue and the white consists of yellow, red, blue and black lines. The dark blue contains small motifs: botehs, a bird, a 4-legged animal and a device which resembles a double-headed eagle. Four birds, small botehs and 2 double-headed eagles appear in each white diamond.

Another way of seeing this design is: as dark blue ground with one central row of diamonds and 2 half rows.

Main border: has yellow ground with geometric motifs, mainly in dark red in which the figures alternately face inwards and outwards.

Inner and outer borders: blue ground with stylised floral meander on black stem with red blossoms and yellow leaves. Note: the lower outer border began as a dark red ground with thin Z-motifs in light green, blue, white, dark blue and yellow. There is an extra border at the top and bottom (incomplete) with diagonal stripes in white and dark blue with small yellow and red botehs on dark blue and red and green botehs on the white.
Dimensions
  • Length: 234cm (maximum)
  • Length: 232cm (minimum)
  • Width: 95cm
  • Weight: 21kg
Weight including roller
Credit line
Bequeathed by Dame Ada MacNaghten
Production
Carpet runner from Fars
Collection
Accession number
T.41-1970

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Record createdOctober 13, 2005
Record URL
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